Warriors: Everlasting Miracles II Turn End: The Final Quest
by Geasswolf
Summary: "The sky will clear, but the Clans must harmonize to help the forest grow." The five Clans finally surround the lake, however, a path of trials still stand in the way of true peace for every Clan. With this, the cats not native to the Clans have one final task in front of them, but will this one end up being the hardest they've faced?
1. Chapter 1: Infected

Hello everyone and welcome back to Everlasting Miracles II! This is the first chapter of the final story in the series. I hope that you all enjoy this installment.

 **NOTE:** If you have yet to read The Raging Storm or any of the other books from A Vision of Shadows, then please stop here. This story contains heavy spoilers due to it being based on The Raging Storm with an added crossover twist.

 **DISCLAIMER:** This story contains elements from Warriors, Code Geass, Sword Art Online, Final Fantasy XV, and Fire Emblem: Awakening. I own nothing from any of these series.

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Warriors Everlasting Miracles II Turn End: The Final Quest

Chapter 1: Infected

 _Noctis followed behind Twigbranch_ and Finleap, along with their apprentices, Snappaw and Flypaw. He wasn't doing anything back at camp, and when that was the case, he usually stuck around with the two warriors. _At least it's spring. I didn't expect to be in this world long enough to live through the winter. Still…nothing serious has happened ever since me and the cats from other worlds spoke with Spottedleaf._

"Noct?" The black tom shook his head and looked over at Twigbranch. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Just thinking."

"You? I doubt that." The she cat joked, letting out a small laugh.

"Y'know, I'm starting to think you're trying to keep me away from hanging out with you." The blue-eyed tom stated. "If you wanted some alone time with Finleap, just ask." A blush formed on the she-cat's face.

"Can we just hurry up and go place our scent markers?" She quickly stammered.

"I don't know why you get so flustered all the time, Twigbranch. The whole Clan knows." Finleap told her with a smile. "Maybe I'll start telling Noct when we need some alone time. He's really my only competition for you, and he doesn't even try!"

"What can I say?" The black tom boasted. "Seriously though, you don't have to worry, Finleap. Twigbranch likes you more than me, I promise." Noctis looked over and saw the two apprentices running off. "Maybe you both should take care of that."

"Flypaw! Get back here!"

"You too, Snappaw!" The two mentors chased their apprentices, Noctis slowly following behind. He caught up to the rest of them when they reached ThunderClan's border with ShadowClan.

"Can you try and keep up Noct? We can't be waiting for you!" Flypaw complained.

"Alright, alright, sorry, Flypaw." The tom apologized. "You really have your work cut out for you, Twigbranch." The tom whispered.

"You have no idea." She let out a sigh. She then looked over at Noctis, the tom raising his nose in the air. "ShadowClan seems to be placing their scent markers more often lately."

"It's not that…" He closed his eyes and tasted the air again. "Blood. It's fresh, and so is the ShadowClan scent along with it." Noctis walked along the border, the other cats following behind him.

"Hey! We have to at least be a bit quiet!" Finleap warned, but his plea fell on deaf ears as Noctis continued at the same pace.

"I'm sure whatever it is won't be threatening." He assured them. A sudden groan of pain rung through Noctis' ears and he quickened his pace. When he arrived at the source, he saw that it was Puddleshine, the tom trapped underneath a bundle of barbed wire between two trees. "Hey! You alright?" Noctis ran to the injured tom's side. He was in horrible condition. Blood seeped from every wound on his body.

"Puddleshine!" Twigbranch ran over, worry in her voice.

"What is all this?" Flypaw wondered.

"Don't touch it!" Noctis swatted her paw away with his tail. "It's barbed wire. I don't know what you Clan cats call it."

"Silverthorn." Finleap meowed. "I have no idea why Twolegs would just leave this out here" He looked over at Flypaw. "Can you go back to camp and get help? We'll need as many paws as we can, and a medicine cat, too."

"I'll go." Noctis offered. "We'll need help as soon as possible."

"Right. Try to hurry, Noct." Twigbranch meowed. The tom nodded and broke out in a quick run, warping around the forest constantly until he made it back to camp.

Over in ThunderClan, cats around the clearing were talking and sharing fresh-kill together. They all suddenly leaped in surprise when Noctis suddenly warped into the clearing.

"Alderheart! We need to go!" He yelled towards the medicine cat's den.

"Noctis, what's going on?" Bramblestar asked as he approached the tom.

"It's Puddleshine. We found him stuck under some barbed…I mean, silverthorn. We need as much help as we can get."

"I'll come along. Kirito! Bumblestripe! Blossomfall! We need to go, now!"

"Is what I heard true? Is Puddleshine hurt?" Asuna asked as she followed behind Kirito and the other cats. "Bramblestar, I _have_ to go."

"There's no changing her mind, y'know." Kirito told the leader.

"Believe me, I'm aware." He meowed, letting out a small smirk. "Very well."

"Okay, I'm ready!" Alderheart ran out with a bundle of herbs. Once the cats were together, Bramblestar looked over at Noctis.

"Lead the way."

When they arrived at the tree, Asuna looked at Puddleshine in horror. The silverthorn stuck into his coat in too many places that it was hard to count exactly how many wounds he had.

"Can't Twolegs dump their rot in places other than our land?" The ThunderClan leader meowed. "No offense you two."

"Forget that, we need to help Puddleshine as fast as possible." Asuna walked over to the ShadowClan medicine cat, cautious for any other wire that might be nearby. "It's going to be okay, Puddleshine, I promise." The she-cat swiped a paw down and was surprised when no menu screen popped up.

"Asuna, it's okay. I brought poppy seeds for him." Alderheart assured her. Sorrow filled the she-cat's hazel eyes. _I'm so useless now. I need my powers. What if this was a life or death situation?_ Her heart sank when she remembered the reason she lost her ability to carry herbs in her inventory. _Briarlight was close enough where I could use my powers to check on her, and I didn't._

"Asuna." The she-cat shook her head and turned when Bramblestar called her. "We need you to push Puddleshine off while we lift the silverthorn. Can you do that?" She nodded and watched as he, Kirito, Noctis, Bumblestripe, and Blossomfall got around Puddleshine and took a piece of the silverthorn carefully in their paws. "Twigbranch, Finleap, you both help remove any thorns in his pelt while Asuna pushes him." They nodded and stood beside Asuna. "Alright, on my mark….One, two, three!" They lifted the mesh up, Puddleshine letting out a gasp of pain.

"You're going to be okay, Puddleshine." Asuna comforted the tom as she began pulling him away from the silverthorn. She noticed his body being lifted up by the wire and looked back at the two warriors. "Twigbranch, Finleap, here!" She pointed at the thorn with her tail, the two working together to remove it from Puddleshine's pelt. Asuna pulled him free slowly, the two removing the countless thorns out of his pelt before finally, he was freed.

"Alright, put it down!" The leader commanded. "Excellent job, everyone. No injuries?"

"I'm fine over here." Kirito meowed. "I think it's just Puddleshine." They looked over at the ShadowClan medicine cat, Asuna and Alderheart sealing his wounds quickly with cobwebs. Bramblestar padded over to them and looked at Puddleshine.

"How is he?"

"Some of his wounds were deep. We've sealed every one, but there's still a chance of infection."

"If I still had my powers I could check…" Asuna looked down at her paws in shame. Bramblestar placed his tail on her shoulder.

"Your powers would be helpful, but they aren't necessary, Asuna." He assured her. "We'll need some cats to go and tell Tigerstar what happened." His amber gaze looked over at the group of warriors. "Finleap, Twigbranch, go tell Tigerstar what happened. Don't bother waiting at the border. I'm sure he'll be more than relieved on how we've taken care of the situation." The two nodded and ran towards ShadowClan. "Noctis, Bumblestripe, try to carry Puddleshine as carefully as possible back to camp." They stood near the drowsy tom, Noctis looking over at Bumblestripe.

"Ready?" The black-striped tom nodded and the two lifted the medicine cat onto their back.

"Great. Let's go, everyone." Bramblestar took the lead, the warriors and apprentices following behind as they made their way back to ThunderClan.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Just put him down here carefully." Alderheart meowed as he guided Noctis and Bumblestripe to the nest Asuna had quickly made for him. "Careful…" He watched as they meticulously put down the injured tom, letting out a sigh of relief when they were finished.

"You don't need to tell us to be careful, you know? We know how much pain he's in." Noctis told the tom.

"Sorry, just a bit worried is all."

"Comes with the job, I'm sure." The black tom retorted. "We should get going. You all will probably be busy for the next few days."

"Thanks again for the help you two." The medicine cat meowed as the two toms left.

"How did this happen?" Leafpool wondered as she looked down at Puddleshine. "He looks horrible."

"He got trapped under some silverthorn. He was trying to collect some borage." Alderheart told her. As he was explaining everything to Leafpool and Jayfeather, he watched as Asuna made her way to the den's exit. "Asuna? Did you want to help?" Jayfeather's ears twitched and his blind gaze looked over at the cream she-cat.

"We won't mind. We can use the extra paws." He stated.

"I…" Asuna shook her head. "I'm sure you three can take care of him. Thank you, though…" Her voice trailed off as she left the medicine cat's den, Jayfeather letting out a growl of annoyance.

"It's not your fault, Jayfeather. If it was she wouldn't have set paw in here." Leafpool assured him. "When a cat as sweet as her is hurt, it takes a bit longer for that pain to go away."

"Right. When she saw Puddleshine, she was devastated that she didn't have her powers."

"Well we offered to let her help and she declined. What does she want?"

"To regain her confidence as a medicine cat." Leafpool stated pragmatically. "Briarlight's death is still consuming her. Asuna is showing that she wants to continue her medicine cat duties, but at the same time she's doubting the skills she's learned. She'll need to spend more time on her own to heal and when she's ready, she'll be in here with us again, I'm sure of it."

In the nursery, Asuna sat down with Lucina and Kirito, the three playing with Foxkit and Swiftkit. The small silver and white kit was busy playing moss ball with Kirito, while the gray tabby was playing with Lucina's tiara.

"How's Puddleshine doing?" Ivypool asked the cream she-cat. "From what I saw he seemed really hurt."

"He was…but I'm sure the others will be able to take care of him." She assured her.

"You want to help them, don't you?" Lucina stated, the she-cat nodding her head.

"I do…but I'm not ready yet."

"Are you sure you're not the one holding yourself back, Asuna?" Lelouch asked her.

"You're an amazing medicine cat, you know that." Ivypool added. "You can't let this one mistake haunt you forever."

"I know, but…" She sighed. "It's complicated." She felt a ball of moss hit her face, the she-cat looking back at her mate. "Really, Kirito?"

"I-It was Swiftkit, I swear!" He quickly stammered.

"Was not!"

"Swiftkit…" Lelouch looked down at his daughter, the kit avoiding his violet gaze. She stood silent for a while until she couldn't stand her father's judgmental gaze.

"Okay…it was me…but Kirito told me to!"

"That one's true." The gray-eyed tom admitted.

"But it was only to try and make Asuna feel better. I promise!"

"It is a Kirito-esque thing to do." Ivypool said with a giggle. "Just don't think every cat will feel better by throwing something at their face, Swiftkit."

"Yes, mom." Asuna gave her a lick to the ear.

"You're sweet, Swiftkit. Just try not to learn from this one." Her hazel eyes looked over at Kirito and sighed. "You're sweet, too."

Lucina watched as Foxkit's paws traveled through the dirt, the tom looking at her tiara from time to time before he continued. The she-cat tilted her head as she watched. She noticed that he seemed to be drawing her tiara in the ground.

"He likes to draw." Lelouch told her as he watched as well.

"It's adorable just watching him. I never knew cats practiced the arts."

"They don't. He asked me what Twoleg kits in my world did at his age and well, drawing was the first activity that came to my mind."

"I think it's done." Foxkit meowed. "Father? Lucina? Does it look good?" They both looked at the drawing and were both surprised at the detail the kit put into it.

"The design on my tiara is simple, but even so you drew every detail. It looks wonderful, Foxkit." Lucina praised him.

"She's right. You should be proud." Lelouch gave the tom a lick to the ear.

"Thank you, father. You too, Lucina." He padded over to where Ivypool was and tugged at her paw.

"He wants to show you his drawing." The violet-eyed tom told his mate.

"I'd be honored to." Ivypool got to her paws and looked down at the picture drawn in the dirt. "What is it?"

"My tiara. Maybe knowing that will help you see it." Ivypool looked over at the tiara and then at the drawing, letting out a smile when she saw it.

"Oh, I see it now! Amazing job, Foxkit." She gave her son a lick on the cheek.

"Hey, I wanna see!" Swiftkit ran over to where her brother was and looked at the drawing. "Wow! You're so talented, Foxkit!" Her blue gaze looked over at Lelouch. "Dad, can you teach me how to do that next? Please?" She begged, causing the tom to laugh before nodding his head. "Yay! I love you soooo much!" Swiftkit pressed closer into her father's black fur. Asuna looked at the loving display with a smile, but it didn't reflect the turmoil that she was feeling on the inside. _Will I ever be ready to return to the medicine cat's den again?_

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Nightheart sat down beside Asuna, Suguha, and Lucina, each of them enjoying a piece of prey. It had been two days ever since Bramblestar and the others brought Puddleshine into camp.

"Seriously? You've eaten bear before, Lucina?" Suguha asked in surprise after taking a bite of her mouse.

"Yes. It's quite alright if prepared correctly. Frederick was always the most proper when it came to cooking it." The she-cat let out a small laugh. "Aunt Lissa was definitely not fond of it at all."

"I've heard tales of bears before, but my guess is that it's much easier to fight them as Twolegs." Nightheart stated, Lucina replying with a nod.

"I can't imagine taking one down as a cat. If I was in this form I'd run away, to be honest."

"I'm sure we all would." Asuna assured her jokingly. Their ears all suddenly twitched and they turned to look at the entrance to camp.

"ShadowClan? Twigbranch did say they'd pick up Puddleshine in a few days." Nightheart stated.

"But he's in no condition to move! Tigerstar has to reconsider." The cream she-cat said. They watched as Fernsong and Brackenfur surrounded the ShadowClan patrol as they were guided into camp.

"Aunt Dovewing!" Nightheart got up and ran towards the patrol when she caught sight of her pale gray coat. When she got close, she noticed Scorchfur let out a hiss, causing her to step back.

"Hey, she just wanted to greet her kin." Molewhisker meowed, placing his tail in front of the she-cat defensively. Nightheart looked around the camp and saw the same hostility she saw in Scorchfur's eyes.

"N-No, I was being rash. I apologize." She backed away from the group, Bramblestar now approaching them.

"Can I assume you're here for Puddleshine?" The leader asked Tawnypelt, his sister leading the group.

"Yes. We told your two warriors that we'd be here in two days." She replied. "Is he ready to leave?" Tawnypelt followed her brother's amber gaze and noticed that he was staring at Dovewing. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, I'm just surprised that you brought her here. Tensions are still running high about her decision to leave."

"She's a member of ShadowClan now. Your warriors can accept that whether they want to or not." His sister retorted.

"Shouldn't she be with her kits in the nursery?"

"I wanted to see Ivypool." The pale gray she-cat finally spoke.

"Why should you be able to? When you left your Clan you left your kin behind." Bumblestripe spat.

"I left because it's what I believed the right thing to do was." She replied.

"Hey, that's Dovewing, right?" Nightheart looked over at the nursery entrance and saw Swiftkit leave, Foxkit following behind. From inside she saw her father's violet gaze fall on her, while her mother stared at her paws. Nightheart led the two kits over to where Dovewing was, Molewhisker following behind.

"This is our aunt, Dovewing. You both probably don't remember her." Nightheart explained.

"You look so much like mom! Well…except for the white splotches…and green eyes." She meowed. From the nursery, Daisy let out a sigh.

"Kin is kin, no matter what Clan they're in."

"Clan loyalty is more important than that!" Cherryfall meowed, moving closer to Bumblestripe. She stared at her brother defiantly.

"They're right. Loyalty to one's Clan triumphs all." Lionblaze stated.

"C'mon, you all can't be serious." Noctis joined in on the argument. "You're telling me that if your siblings were in another Clan you'd fight them? No problem at all?"

"Yes!" Bumblestripe responded. "It might be hard for you and the others not from here to understand, but that's how the warrior code works."

"Noct is right." Molewhisker stated. "If somehow Cherryfall and I were in different Clans, I'd never lay a paw on her." From the nursery, Jayfeather padded over to the medicine cat's den, letting out a hiss of annoyance.

"If cats didn't keep falling in love with the wrong mates a lot of trouble would be avoided." His blind gaze touched Squirrelflight, the deputy looking at him in surprise.

"Really? Don't blame me for what Leafpool did. I only did it to help her because I love her."

"And look at everything that happened because of it."

"Jayfeather, you know that's not fair." Asuna told the tom, but it fell on deaf ears as he entered the medicine cat's den.

Dovewing looked over at the nursery, hoping to get some sort of response from her sister. A glimmer of hope appeared when she saw her blue eyes looking at her. _Ivypool…please…_

"Mom says you have kits as well. Do they look anything like us?" Swiftkit asked, breaking Dovewing's gaze away from the nursery.

"Shadowkit does, sort of. Lightkit and Pouncekit look more like their father." She looked over at Nightheart. "Just like how your older sister looks like her father." Nightheart let out a smile, brushing pelts with her aunt. "How is everything? Are your siblings giving you a hard time?"

"Not at all, although Swiftkit might in the future. Foxkit spends most of his time around father, but he loves to play when he gets the chance." Nightheart followed Dovewing's gaze over to the nursery. "Mother? Please come out. If not for aunt Dovewing, at least do it for me?" In the nursery, Lelouch nudged the she-cat out with his nose, Ivypool now making her way towards her sister.

"I'm sorry that I'm being like this. It just…feels so strange that you're living in another Clan and that our kits won't be able to play with each other." She confessed. "How are they?"

"They're doing well. I hope you can visit them sometime soon. The same goes for your mate over there." Dovewing shared a smile with the violet-eyed tom in the nursery.

"That won't be happening anytime soon." Scorchfur stated. "Tigerstar isn't welcoming any guests at the moment." He turned his gaze towards Bramblestar. "So, where's Puddleshine?" Alderheart now stepped forward.

"He's too sick to travel still."

"What? Have you not cured him yet?"

"He's trying his best." Bramblestar answered. "But his wounds seem to be healing at a slow rate."

"I've tried everything, but his wounds are infected. I haven't found the right herb to cure him yet."

"Your Clan has four medicine cats?" Tawnypelt meowed in disbelief.

"Three." Asuna corrected her softly.

"Regardless, you all should know some way to heal a silverthorn wound!" Not willing to wait for a response, Tawnypelt locked her gaze onto the medicine cat's den and padded towards it, Bramblestar and Alderheart following behind.

As Dovewing rested down and admired Ivypool's kits, Nightheart pulled Molewhisker aside to speak with the tom.

"I just wanted to thank you for defending me, Molewhisker."

"It's no trouble at all, Nightheart, really."

"Yes it is. Nearly every cat in this Clan puts loyalty over kin. I'm happy to know that you're not like everyone else." A sudden blush formed on the tom's face. "Are you not worried that your sister has a different stance on this?"

"She can do what she wants. If we disagree, we disagree." He replied. Suddenly, the tom heard his stomach growl, causing Nightheart to giggle. "S-Sorry about that! I just started eating before ShadowClan came."

"That's okay. You should go finish your prey." The she-cat suggested with a smile. The brown-and-cream tom returned a smile of his own before making his way back to the mouse he was eating.

"Aha! I knew it!" Nightheart let out a yelp of surprise when Suguha appeared behind her.

"Great StarClan, Suguha! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"Well I didn't want to interfere with you and your mate." Nightheart's face began to burn.

"M-Molewhisker and I are not mates!" She quickly stammered.

"I agree with Suguha. The way he defended you reminded me of some of the romance stories I've read." Lucina meowed.

"Lucina, not you too…"

"He has been looking at you a certain way, you know." Nightheart turned around when she heard her father's voice.

"Father as well? StarClan help me…" Lelouch gave her a lick to the ear.

"I'm only kidding. It would make sense for him to fall for one of the most beautiful cats in camp, though."

"Father, stop it." Nightheart said, giving him a small push. "Even if he did like me, I'm definitely not looking for a mate yet."

"That didn't stop you and Kazuto for a bit." Suguha said.

"T-That's totally different! We both admitted our feelings but weren't even mates at all!"

"Alright, that's enough teasing Nightheart for now." Lelouch meowed. "If you need me, I'll be with your mother."

"Bye, father." Lelouch walked over to join Ivypool, their kits, and her sister, the pale gray she-cat smiling as he approached them. Asuna was with them as well.

"Don't tell me you teased your daughter about Molewhisker." Ivypool hoped, Lelouch letting out a smirk. She gave her mate a shove. "You're such a troublesome father, sometimes. Swiftkit definitely gets it from you."

"I get what from dad? What is it?" Swiftkit ran over to her father.

"Your mother thinks you get your playfulness from your father, but it's definitely from both of them, I'm sure of that." Dovewing said with a small laugh.

"What do I get from you both?" Foxkit asked, curiosity in his meow.

"Other than your gray coat and dark stripes...I'd say your quietness comes from your father. He only speaks when it's necessary or helpful…but not all the time." Ivypool told him with a small chuckle.

"But what about from you, mother?" He wondered.

"We won't know yet, but maybe her abilities as a warrior. She's one of the best in ThunderClan after all." Lelouch told him.

"I'll do my best when the time comes, I promise." Foxkit stated.

"And there's some of Lelouch right there." Asuna said with a small laugh. "He's definitely taking from his father." Lelouch touched noses with his son before looking over at Dovewing.

"How are your kits doing?"

"Great! They've been asking to see their uncle for a while, Lucina as well, actually. I tell them that once they become apprentices they'll be able to at Gatherings." Dovewing heard her name being called from behind her and saw that it was Tawnypelt. "I guess that means I should get going now." Ivypool brushed muzzles with her sister, while the two kits pressed close to Dovewing before she left.

"Stay safe, Dovewing." The cream she-cat meowed before she left. Once the ShadowClan patrol had left camp, Asuna noticed Alderheart leaving as well. She hesitated for a moment, before finally deciding to follow them.

"If anyone asks, tell them I went out with Alderheart." Asuna told the two warriors.

"Bye, Asuna!" Swiftkit waved as she left camp. When she passed through the thorn tunnel, she saw Alderheart stop up ahead before turning around.

"Oh, hi Asuna. What are you going out for?"

"I'm going with you. I'm not sure where you're going, but I assume it's related to helping Puddleshine."

"Yeah. I appreciate the help, Asuna. I'd definitely appreciate the opinion of a second medicine cat." Alderheart stopped. "Sorry, I didn't mean to call you that. It's just…I really wish you'd come back to the medicine cat's den, Asuna."

"I know…and I think I will." Alderheart looked at the she-cat with joy.

"Really?" She nodded.

"After seeing the condition Puddleshine was in, I really wanted to help. You three also have no idea what's causing his infection, but with my powers, I'd be able to look over him and see what's wrong." She answered. "I gave up my powers because I blamed myself for Briarlight's death, but I wouldn't be able to live with myself knowing that my powers that I lost could be what saves Puddleshine." Asuna let out a sigh. "Hopefully I'm not too late to realize that." She swiped her paw down in front of her, but no menu appeared. "Thought so."

"Powers or not, the skills you've gained with me in training are more than helpful, Asuna."

"Thank you, Alderheart." She meowed, giving his ear a lick. "Do you mind keeping this between us for now? I know what I said made it seem like I was ready to come back, but I'm not quite there yet."

"Sure. Just knowing that you're almost there is good enough for me." He said. "C'mon, we're going to look near the silverthorn. There has to be some reason Puddleshine's not getting better." The two walked towards the location of the silverthorn, crossing the stick-laden clearing that was used for apprentice training. When they reached the tree where the silverthorn was, they both began looking around for some clue as to why Puddleshine wasn't recovering. Nearby, Alderheart noticed a deathberry bush.

"Do you think some of the juice from the deathberries tainted the silverthorn?" Asuna asked.

"No. It doesn't look like it. All I smell from it is Puddleshine's blood, and that's slightly faint now. If it wasn't deathberries…then what?" From behind, they heard a row of bushes rustling and saw Sparkpelt appear alongside Kirito and Ambermoon. The three had went out on the morning hunting patrol and were making their way back to camp.

"Hey Alderheart and Asuna! What are you both doing out here?" Sparkpelt asked as she and the others approached.

"We're trying to figure out what's made Puddleshine so sick." Her brother replied.

"Any luck?" Kirito wondered, the two shaking their heads.

"We don't see anything that could cause his injury to be incurable." The cream she-cat stated.

"Maybe the Twolegs did something to it." Ambermoon suggested.

"There's no real reason for them to coat barbed wire with anything." The black tom said. "But if one thing's for certain, it has to do with it."

"Well I'm sure you'll both figure it out." Sparkpelt meowed. Nearby, she saw a rabbit and got into a hunter's crouch, however, there was something wrong with it. "Injured rabbit? StarClan, thank you for making this an easy catch."

"Wait!" Alderheart quickly placed his tail in front of her. "Can't you smell that? It has the same infection that Puddleshine has." The three warriors tasted the air and looked at each other.

"Someone here's trying to kill our Clanmates." Kirito looked over at Sparkpelt.

"Am not! I just got a bit excited, that's all." She retorted. "You may be fun, Kirito, but sometimes I wonder how Asuna deals with you."

"Alright you two, let's just go over to the beeches. There's usually a lot of rabbits over there." Ambermoon meowed.

"Will you both be fine here?" Sparkpelt asked.

"Yeah. We're just going to investigate a bit more. Good luck on the hunting, you three." She nodded her head in thanks before the group headed back into the forest. As they continued looking, Alderheart noticed that the rabbit now was walking over to the deathberry bush. "Asuna, look." The two watched as it pulled off one of the berries from the bush and began nibbling into the poisonous flesh. "What in the name of StarClan is it doing?"

"Is it deadly to them as well?"

"I'm pretty sure." They both continued watching until it was done eating. "Maybe it's in so much pain from the infection that it wants to die."

"That's so sad. It that how much pain Puddleshine is going through?"

"I hope not." Alderheart turned around. "I promised Puddleshine I'd pick up some wood sorrel to try and see if that would cure him. We should go pick some as fast as possible." Asuna nodded, the two rushing as they made their way to retrieve the herb. _Puddleshine, please hang on. If my powers can find out what's causing his infection, StarClan please give them back to me._


	2. Chapter 2: Healing Touch

Chapter 2: Healing Touch

 _Asuna's hazel eyes looked_ around when she woke up. She was dreaming, the she-cat no longer in the warriors' den beside Kirito. She saw that she wasn't in the Forest of Moonlight either, so Spottedleaf wasn't trying to speak with her. _StarClan?_ She realized that she was in the forests of ThunderClan.

"Asuna." She heard a voice call from behind her. She turned and saw a dark brown she-cat sitting down, her sky blue eyes locked onto her.

"Is that…" As she got closer, Asuna's eyes glimmered with tears when she noticed that it was Briarlight. "Briarlight!" She broke into a run, but suddenly stopped when she saw malice in the she-cat's eyes.

"Are you happy that I'm here? Is that it?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" Asuna stepped back slowly when she turned around.

"Your negligence is why I'm here, don't you know that?" Briarlight spat. "You're the reason I died, Asuna!"

"N-No…I know it's my fault, but I didn't mean for it to happen!" She pleaded. "Don't be mad at me, Briarlight. I love you so much, you know that!"

"Not enough to even check on me. If you loved and cared about me, I wouldn't be here right now!" She leaped forward, pinning Asuna to the ground. "I guess I should thank you, Asuna. I can finally leap around on all fours…and I'll be able to kill you so you know exactly how I feel!" The she-cat shut her eyes, bracing any incoming pain.

"Leave her alone!" Asuna suddenly felt the weight on top of her vanish. She opened her eyes and looked up to see Briarlight. "Asuna, are you okay?" She knew something was different. Her brilliant blue eyes were only filled with kindness, the same she was so used to seeing.

"Oh, Briarlight!" Asuna pressed her head into the she-cat's shoulder. "I'm so sorry for what happened to you! It's all my fault!" Her tears fell into the dark brown she-cat's starry coat.

"Asuna, don't cry, please." She meowed, giving her a lick to the ear. "Everything that happened to me was because of me alone." Briarlight meowed. "You've been blaming yourself this whole time. My death wasn't your fault at all, please understand that."

"I…I don't know if I can." Asuna turned her gaze away from her. "Even if you didn't tell us, I should've paid attention to you."

"I had a feeling you were going to say that." Briarlight said, letting out a sigh. "You're one of the most caring cats I've ever gotten to know, Asuna. Being a medicine cat, you know that you're going to lose lives someday. I know you stepped away from your duties because of me, but you can't let my death end up causing others to die because you're scared. Cats may need to depend on you, Asuna. I know you understand that with what's happening to Puddleshine right now."

"I do. I want to help him, but I think the nightmare you that just attacked me brought my fear back." Briarlight pressed closer to the she-cat.

"You don't have to be afraid of anything anymore, Asuna. I'm here to protect you and rid you of any doubts that you'll ever have from now on. I love you too much to see you go through any more pain. You don't deserve any of it." Asuna looked at the she-cat and let out a smile. "Please keep that smile from now on. It's weird enough that I practically just killed myself."

"I will, for you, Briarlight."

"That's a relief. Oh, try using your menu now!" Asuna swiped a paw down and saw that the menu screen she was so used to utilizing returned. "Ta-da! You're welcome, by the way."

"Thank you so much, Briarlight. I guess this was the final step I needed to take before returning to the medicine den."

"Yes. I'm sorry that my death had been burdening you. To think I thought asking for help was going to be the burden. I didn't think about the trouble it would give you afterwards." Asuna gave her a comforting lick to the ear.

"It's okay." The cream she-cat assured you. "I miss you so much, Briarlight."

"I miss you and the others, too, Asuna. Luckily I'm able to watch from StarClan, but it's not exactly the same." She meowed. "Plus, I know I should be sad about dying, but it feels so good to be able to run and hunt again! I've felt like a whole new cat ever since I've been here."

"I'm glad to hear that. Whenever you want to talk, feel free to let me dream. I won't mind one bit."

"I'll see what I can do." Briarlight let out a small smile. "Oh, and for giving you your powers, can you do me a favor?"

"Anything."

"Okay. Can you tell Lelouch I said hi? Oh, and that his kits are adorable!"

"I had a feeling it would be Lelouch related." The cream she-cat said with a giggle. "I'm sure he'd love to have a chance to talk with you again, too."

"You're probably right. I should try one day." She meowed. "Oh, you should probably get up now. I'm sure Alderheart and the others will love to see you finally return to the medicine den." Asuna watched as Briarlight slowly began to disappear.

"Thank you again, Briarlight. I'll try my best to help Puddleshine."

"I believe in you, Asuna. You and the others will cure him, I just know it."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Asuna opened her eyes and found herself back in the warriors' den. She noticed that most of the cats were still asleep.

"Good morning, Asuna. Sleep well?" Cloudtail asked, the tom resting beside Brightheart.

"Kinda. I didn't wake anyone up last night, did I?"

"Not that we know of. Did you have a nightmare?" The she-cat asked.

"For a little bit. Oh, I need to get going you two, sorry for cutting this short!" Asuna rushed out of the den and made her way over to the medicine den. When she passed by the brambles, the other three all looked at her.

"Asuna, did you need something?" Leafpool asked, the she-cat shaking her head.

"I'm ready to help you three again." She stated. "I can't let Puddleshine die." She looked down at the tom, her hazel eyes glowing.

"Your powers are back? That's great!" Alderheart meowed in joy.

"Briarlight was the final push I needed to come back." She told him as she continued looking all over the tom. "All I can see is that he's infected. Whatever can cure him is something I've never learned about before."

"But we've taught you every herb there is." Jayfeather meowed. "Are you certain that your power's right?"

"Yes. The answer has to be somewhere, but even I'm not sure where to look." She replied. "How has he been doing? His vitals were low."

"He just had a seizure a few minutes ago." Leafpool told her. "We should tell Tigerstar about this. He has to know."

"No! We'll cure him, I know it!" Alderheart assured her.

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't tell his leader." Jayfeather added.

"Just give me some time. Give him some feverfew and thyme while I'm gone so he stabilizes." The dark ginger tom meowed. "Asuna, do you mind coming out with me?"

"Where are you both going?" The she-cat asked.

"Out." Alderheart left the den, Asuna looking back at the other two.

"When he's like this, it's usually a good thing." She said with a small laugh.

"Just try to keep him under control." The blind tom responded before Asuna left the den.

The morning of dawn shone through the tress in the forest as Asuna followed Alderheart. From the path they were taking, she knew they were returning to where the silverthorn was. When they reached it, Alderheart gave it a sniff, but shook his head.

"Can you try to use your powers to see if anything's wrong with it?" He asked. Asuna nodded and stared at the mesh for a while, but shook her head.

"It's not a herb or an injured cat, so I guess not." Asuna apologized. "There has to be a reason for Puddleshine's infection. I know I can't scan it, but maybe it is tainted with poison."

"If that's the case, do you have any idea what kind of poison Twolegs would put on it?" The tom wondered, Asuna shaking her head. "There has to be something!" Alderheart hit the ground with a paw in frustration. He stopped when he suddenly heard the deathberry bush begin to rustle. From the bush, a rabbit limped out. Alderheart noticed that it was the same exact rabbit that he and Asuna saw yesterday.

"It's still limping, but the infection from yesterday is barely there." Asuna meowed, her hazel eyes glowing. "Alderheart, the last thing we saw the rabbit do was eat a deathberry. If it has the same infection Puddleshine has…"

"Then deathberries are what will cure him!" Alderheart realized. "That's what my dream was trying to tell me!"

"Your dream?" The tom nodded.

"Yeah. There was a huge fire going through the forest, but as it passed, beautiful meadows followed." He explained. "The fire is the deathberries. We usually think they'd kill, but in this case, they have to be what cures Puddleshine!" The two approached the bush and saw a pile of deathberry seeds under it, most likely from the rabbit. Asuna examined the berries, her eyes widening in astonishment.

"You're right, Alderheart. When I usually look at deathberries, the only thing I see is a warning, but now there's a medicinal entry above it. It just says infection, but nothing else." Asuna told him. "We have to try it. It might be Puddleshine's only hope."

"I couldn't agree with you more." Alderheart rushed over to the dock plant nearby and picked out the biggest leaf he could find. He meticulously plucked off some of the berries with a claw and created a bundle out of them. Once he wrapped it up, he looked over at Asuna. "Leafpool and Jayfeather aren't going to agree with me. I need you to back me up in any way possible, Asuna. Please."

"Don't worry, Alderheart. I'll try to persuade the two as best as I can." The tom gave her a nod of thanks before picking up the bundle and returning to camp with her.

When they returned back to camp, they immediately made their way over to the medicine den. Leafpool looked at Alderheart in surprise when she saw the bundle he was carrying.

"What's in there?"

"Deathberries?" Jayfeather's nose immediately caught the scent before he even opened it. "What in the name of StarClan are you doing with those?"

"We think they can help cure Puddleshine." Asuna meowed. "I know it seemed far-fetched, but…"

"It's more than far-fetched! They're literally a death sentence! Do you both have bees in your brain?" The blind tom snapped. "It's the first day you return into the medicine den and you work with Alderheart to come up with this? You should know better, Asuna."

"What if a kit comes in here and eats one?" Leafpool asked, concern in her amber gaze.

"I'll hide them so that no kit comes in." Alderheart assured her.

"And if the juice gets stuck to your paw and you trail around camp with it?" Jayfeather added.

"We both know the risks! We won't put any cat in danger!"

"Except for Puddleshine!" Jayfeather spat.

"How did you both think of such a crazy idea anyway?" Leafpool questioned.

"There was a rabbit we saw yesterday. He had the same exact infection that Puddleshine has. It was eating deathberries." Asuna began. "Today, we saw the exact same one, but there was no more infection. I even looked at him with my powers and saw that there was little infection. We even found a pile of seeds under the bush that had to have belonged to it. Even when I look at deathberries there's a medicinal entry about them."

"Are you sure that they were deathberries?" The light-brown tabby asked, hesitation still in her meow.

"Yes. That's where we got those berries." Alderheart stated. "You have to let us try."

"No! You're not giving these to Puddleshine. Even if Asuna's powers did tell you about them, can they be reliable? Look what happened to Briarlight." Fury immediately flared in Asuna's hazel eyes and she stared at the blind tom.

"Get out!" She yelled. "I hate you, Jayfeather! Get out of this den, now!"

"No! Why should—." The tom stopped when Asuna pinned him down. He could feel tears from the she-cat's eyes land on his face.

"Just…get out…"

"Asuna, we'll go." Leafpool told her. "You can get off of him." Asuna let the blind tom up, Jayfeather avoiding her hazel gaze. "You both need to know that whatever happens to Puddleshine is on your paws."

"Yes, Leafpool." Alderheart answered for them both. Once the two left, Alderheart looked over at Asuna, the she-cat wiping her eyes with a paw. "Asuna, are you okay?"

"Why would he say something like that?" She muttered. "Does he not trust me, Alderheart?"

"Of course he does. You know that he likes you."

"Then why does he try to hurt me so much?"

"He's just frustrated. Remember what he said to you when Briarlight died? What he said was out of anger and sadness. This time was like that as well." He said. "What we're doing is extremely risky and he's concerned."

"I-I think you both should try." Puddleshine groaned from his nest. "I believe in you both. Just…don't feel bad if I die. I rather die from an attempt to help me than by the infection." The two heard pawsteps from the entrance and turned to see Bramblestar.

"Is everything okay in here? I heard Asuna yell."

"I'm sorry, Bramblestar." The she-cat apologized. "Jayfeather said some things…and I attacked him." She confessed.

"It involved Briarlight." Alderheart added.

"That more than enough explains it." He meowed. "I'm more than happy to see you in the medicine den again, Asuna, but try not to attack your fellow medicine cats, no matter what they may say."

"Yes, Bramblestar." With that, the leader left, Asuna shaking her head. "I'm sorry you had to see me do that, Alderheart."

"Don't be. What Jayfeather said was definitely inappropriate and unnecessary." He meowed. "I'm just happy to have you on my side, Asuna." Alderheart opened the dock leaf and nudged a deathberry in front of Puddleshine, the tom not even hesitating to take a bite of the berry's flesh. _StarClan, please let this work._

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Asuna walked beside Alderheart as they returned to camp with the rest of the Clan. A few nights after returning to camp with the deathberries, there was a Gathering. At the meeting, Leafstar had accused ShadowClan warriors of crossing their border and hunting on their land, starting a dispute between SkyClan and the other Clans regarding land. Tree had suggested for a meeting between SkyClan and ShadowClan, which seemed to ease some tension at the meeting. However, hearing Bramblestar tell Tigerstar that Puddleshine was almost ready to return home struck fear into the two.

"He hasn't gotten better yet, Alderheart. It doesn't look like we can convince your father to keep him with us longer, either."

"I know." He meowed. "Leafpool suggested that we tell him about the deathberry treatment. I already know he's going to yell at me."

"Don't worry. I'll be there to vouch for you." Asuna assured him. "I believe in the treatment, Alderheart. It probably just needs more time to settle in."

As the group made their way into camp, Alderheart and Asuna walked over to where Bramblestar was, the leader noticing them as he made his way to his den.

"Is something wrong you two?"

"We…we need to tell you something." Alderheart meowed nervously. "It's about Puddleshine."

"What is it?" He asked, but the two didn't say anything. "Is everything okay?"

"Alderheart and I have been feeding him deathberries to try and cure him." Bramblestar's eyes widened in shock before a look of anger took over.

"You've been feeding him deathberries? You both should've told me before doing something like that!"

"I talked with Leafpool and Jayfeather about it before—." Bramblestar lashed his tail in anger.

"They're not your leader! You both understand that what happens in this Clan falls on my shoulders!"

"You're not a medicine cat!" Alderheart retorted.

"Bramblestar…Alderheart and I are sure that this treatment works." Asuna began explaining to the leader about the rabbit that convinced the two that the deathberry treatment, although drastic, was plausible.

"You both know that it can kill him, I'm sure of it."

"Yes, but it's the only thing that can possibly save him." Alderheart pleaded.

"And you said a dream told you this?"

"Yes! We know how horrible it sounds, but with what we've both learned, we know it can cure him." Bramblestar let out a sigh.

"I trust you both, really, I do. However, if this fails, there could be trouble between our Clans. That burden will forever be on you both, understand?"

"Yes, Bramblestar"

"Very well. Goodnight."

Two days passed ever since the Gathering, and Puddleshine's treatment still showed no signs of being effective. Tigerstar had been seen waiting on ThunderClan's border and was escorted into camp. He wanted to talk with Bramblestar about some advice on how to deal with SkyClan, but that effort was fruitless. Alderheart and Asuna watched the leaders talk, waiting for Tigerstar to ask about Puddleshine.

"Well, don't say I didn't come here in peace, Bramblestar." Tigerstar meowed passive-aggressively. "While I'm here, I'll be taking Puddleshine back to camp."

"You can't! He still needs to heal." Alderheart told him.

"Still?" The ShadowClan leader looked at him in disbelief.

"We're been trying our best, Tigerstar, but we can't get rid of the infection." Asuna stated.

"Let me see him." The ShadowClan leader made his way over to the medicine den and stared in disbelief when he saw Puddleshine. "He look half dead!"

"Hey, if yelling would help he'd be better." Jayfeather hissed.

"What's wrong with him?"

"It's the infection, Tigerstar. We're trying our best, really." Asuna meowed. "We just can't seem to cure it."

"You've had a quarter moon, and he has four medicine cats looking after him! What's…" Tigerstar noticed Alderheart's gaze trail away, his amber eyes following it towards the dock leaf. "Is that…" He walked over to it and saw the deathberries. "Deathberries!? What in the name of StarClan are you doing? Are you trying to kill him?"

"No cat is doing such a thing." Bramblestar assured him. "He's being well taken care of. It's just the Twoleg poison we're having trouble curing."

"And one of your medicine cats is a Twoleg?" He looked over at Asuna. "Asuna, do you really not know how to cure him at all?" The cream she-cat shook her head.

"Deathberries were the only thing Alderheart and I believed would—."

"You? Out of everyone, you thought that deathberries would help!?"

"Yes! There's evidence that we've gained showing that it can work!" Asuna responded. "You have to trust us, Tigerstar. Please."

"They saw a rabbit with the same infection Puddleshine has. It ate deathberries, and a day later it was all better." Jayfeather explained. "We've tried everything else. He might be dead right now if it wasn't for those deathberries." Tigerstar still didn't seem convinced.

"I had a vision of a meadow growing after a raging fire. I'm positive it was a sign that the deathberries would bring Puddleshine back to full health. We haven't fed him the seeds, only the flesh in hope that it would kill the Twoleg poison in his body." Alderheart added.

"Puddleshine agreed to the treatment." Asuna mentioned. "He believed in us, and he hasn't died yet."

"But he could?"

"Unfortunately." Jayfeather meowed coldly.

"Very well." Tigerstar looked over at Bramblestar. "We'll take Puddleshine back home. If he's to die, I want it to be with his Clanmates."

"You can't! He's not fit enough to move!" Leafpool pleaded.

"Some of my warriors can carry him back. It's no trouble at all."

"But then what about when you get back to camp? Who's going to look after him?" Alderheart asked. Tigerstar looked over at him, and then at Asuna.

"I'm sure you both are concerned about your patient. You wouldn't mind coming over to ShadowClan to make sure he's okay."

"Alderheart stays here." Bramblestar stated. Tigerstar looked over at Asuna. "Asuna stays here as well."

"Bramblestar…" Asuna looked over at the leader, concern in her hazel eyes.

"No cat is leaving. Puddleshine is staying here until he feels better." The leaders both looked at each other, amber gazes locked onto each other. Their stances hardened, almost as if the two were ready to fight.

"I'll go." Alderheart muttered, breaking the silence between them. Tigerstar let out a sly grin.

"I'm glad you have faith in your treatment, Alderheart. If Puddleshine recovers, all will be well."

"And if he doesn't?" Bramblestar's intense gaze still locked onto the ShadowClan leader.

"Then it's obvious that Alderheart poisoned him. What else would happen other than a swift punishment?"

"You can't do that!" Asuna stated, causing the leader to turn around. "You know that Alderheart's trying to help him! How can you hold him hostage like that?"

"I've stated my final offer. We're taking Puddleshine home and Alderheart will come to help him. Or, maybe it's that you don't have faith in your kin and want to protect him, Bramblestar, because you know the treatment is a hoax."

"No, it _will_ work, and I'll prove it!" Alderheart spat. "I'll go with you and make sure Puddleshine recovers."

"Then I'm going as well." Asuna meowed.

"Asuna, you don't have to go, too." Jayfeather told her.

"Since when do you care what happens to me?" The she-cat spat, causing the blind tom to flinch. "I agreed with Alderheart that the treatment would cure him. If it fails, he shouldn't be the only one punished, but if it comes to that…" Asuna stood face to face with Tigerstar, their noses nearly touching. "I swear that I'll take as many lives from you as I can before you lay a paw on him, even if we're friends."

"Still as protective as ever." He meowed. "I promise that you'll both come back here safe if the treatment is successful." He turned his gaze towards the middle of ThunderClan's camp. "Juniperclaw! Sparrowtail!" He called out for his warriors. "Help carry Puddleshine back to camp. We'll be taking Asuna and Alderheart with us as well." The two nodded and helped carry the infected ShadowClan medicine cat while Alderheart carried the dock leaf filled with deathberries. As they were about to leave, Bramblestar placed his tail on Asuna's shoulder.

"Thank you for looking after him, Asuna. I believe that you both will be able to cure him…but if not, don't risk your life if it isn't necessary. We'll send a patrol the moment we feel that something is wrong." Asuna replied with a simple nod before catching up with the ShadowClan patrol.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Noctis entered camp alongside Kirito, Twigbranch, and Flypaw. They had gone out hunting, but also watched how Twigbranch trained Flypaw. When the apprentice caught sight of her mother, she immediately ran over to her, causing the gray she-cat's ears to fall flat.

"You have to ease up a bit on her, Twigbranch." Noctis told her. "Remember how mad you'd get with Sandynose?"

"But that's different! She doesn't know how to focus."

"Stressing her out won't help." Kirito added. "You're a good warrior, Twigbranch. You just need to be patient."

"Easy for you both to say. It's not like you have apprentices of your own."

"If we did we'd both easily overshadow you, no problem." The taller black tom replied ingeniously.

"Hey!" She gave Noctis a small push.

"Do you think they'll kill them if Puddleshine dies?" The three turned when they overheard Daisy by the nursery speaking with Ivypool, the queen cleaning Foxkit.

"Graystripe says that Tigerstar killed Firestar. Mother, does that mean this Tigerstar will kill Alderheart and Asuna?"

"What!?" Kirito rushed over to the queens. "What did Foxkit just say?" He asked anxiously before the other two caught up with him. Ivypool gave the kit one final lick before letting him go.

"Go play with your sister and father." She meowed before touching Kirito's dark gray gaze. "You were out hunting when this happened, but Tigerstar came to pick up Puddleshine." Ivypool began. "He took Alderheart and Asuna with them back to ShadowClan."

"Didn't they want to go?" Twigbranch asked.

"Alderheart seemed scared about it. I'm sure Asuna went to protect him more than help with taking care of Puddleshine." Daisy meowed.

"Bramblestar would've stopped them if he knew something would be wrong." The silver and white tabby replied.

"But it also sounded like Alderheart didn't have a choice." She looked over at the three warriors. "Molewhisker said that Alderheart and Asuna had been feeding Puddleshine deathberries.

"Really? Leafpool always told me to avoid those when I helped her while she was in SkyClan." Noctis said in disbelief.

"If Asuna and Alderheart both did it, they have to be sure that it works." Kirito stated. "I've known Asuna for long enough and know that she'd never do something so risky if she wasn't confident. The same goes for Alderheart."

"But if it doesn't work…you said they'd kill him?" Twigbranch mewed.

"That's what he practically said." Daisy stated.

"He said that they'd both be punished." Ivypool clarified before looking over at Kirito. "Asuna will be okay, I'm sure of it. Tigerstar just said those things to force them to come with him to ShadowClan. You know that those two are friends. I'm sure his ascent to leader won't change that." She assured him.

"Right. Thanks, Ivypool."

"No, I was the prey last time, Swiftkit!" The three heard Foxkit complain nearby.

"No you weren't!" The silver and white kit retorted. "Dad, tell him to let me be it this time!"

"Hey you two! You got two big pieces of prey right here!" Twigbranch called out. She looked over at Kirito. "It'll help stop you worrying about Asuna." She then touched Noctis with her tail. "…and it'll keep this one from worrying about Alderheart."

"I think you're more worried about him than me." The tom meowed.

"Prey!" Swiftkit dashed over to Kirito before tackling his forepaw. "Gotcha! That was the easiest piece of prey to catch ever!" The tom let out a smile.

"Well I wasn't ready! C'mon, you'll need to work a bit harder to catch me. If you do, I'll teach you some battle moves."

"Yay!" The she-cat cheered.

"Please at least be careful, Kirito." Ivypool asked. "I don't want to have to claw your ears off."

"She'll be fine." He assured her before he began to run around camp. _Asuna, I know you and Alderheart will save Puddleshine. Don't give up._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

 _Asuna dug into the ground,_ placing the deathberry seeds inside before covering the hole up. She and Alderheart had been in ShadowClan for a few days, and the deathberry treatment still didn't seem to be working. To make matters worse, Tigerstar had no idea that they were continuing with the treatment, although he didn't specifically forbid them from doing so, either.

"So much for not being prisoners." Alderheart muttered as he looked around the den. Outside, Scorchfur and Cloverfoot were keeping watch, Tigerstar assigning two warriors to watch the den at all times. Asuna was even surprised at the action. "He can't really think we want to escape, does he?"

"It seems that way." Asuna said with a sigh. "He isn't the same cat I remember at all." Alderheart looked through Puddleshine's herb storage and noticed that some of the herbs were going back.

"Help me clear some of the old herbs out?" The she-cat nodded and began picking out the dried out herbs.

"What are you both doing?" Cloverfoot ran inside the den. "Do you need those herbs?" She asked.

"We're just clearing out the old ones for Puddleshine. He hasn't been here in so long, after all." Asuna meowed.

"How do I not know you're lying?" The ShadowClan warrior continued to question. "You could destroy our whole Clan if he dies."

"Which is exactly why we're trying to help him! Just because we're not Clanmates doesn't mean we're not friends." Alderheart retorted.

"What's going on?" Scorchfur now entered the den, his gaze looking over at Cloverfoot.

"They said that they were sorting herbs, but I don't trust them." The tom's daughter told him. Scorchfur shook his head.

"You don't have to worry. Asuna's trustworthy enough." He assured her. "She took care of your mother and sister while you were with the rogues." Asuna smiled at the tom's praise. She was glad that he didn't forget. "I would try and convince Tigerstar that they don't need to be watched, but I don't want to be questioning his orders."

"It's okay, Scorchfur. Thank you for trusting me. It means a lot." The cream she-cat meowed.

"Just make sure Puddleshine gets better."

"We're trying our best." Alderheart replied. "Your thyme stock is running low. You'll also need more watermint, borage, nettles…" He was stopped by a flick of Cloverfoot's tail.

"We're warriors, you know. It's not our job to be collecting herbs."

"I'll go with them when I get the chance, Alderheart." Asuna meowed.

"Now would be a good time, actually, Asuna." The tom said. "I'll be fine in here. It'd be good for us to split up on duties. That way we can focus on Puddleshine without worry."

"Okay. Scorchfur, can you escort me to Tigerstar?" The tom nodded and led the she-cat outside of the medicine den. They walked across the clearing towards the leader, Tigerstar supervising the Clan.

"Asuna wanted to speak with you." The dark gray tom told him before leaving.

"Is something wrong with Puddleshine?" He asked, the she-cat shaking her head. "What is it, Asuna?"

"Alderheart and I were going through Puddleshine's herbs and found that some were going bad. I was wondering if it'd be alright for me to go out and pick some to replenish his storage."

"Yeah, that'd be a good idea. Thanks for checking it all out for him." He meowed. "Do you need me to send out another warrior to help you?" Asuna swiped a paw down, causing the tom to chuckle. "Right, your storage power. Just come back safe, okay?" The she-cat turned around and made her way to the camp exit. "Asuna, wait." She turned back and walked over to the leader.

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry for taking you and Alderheart in with us. Without a medicine cat here, there's not much we can do if something bad happens."

"You could've just asked me in the first place. You didn't need to threaten Alderheart and I. You know I'd help, Tigerstar." She told him. "Did you actually mean it when you said that we'd be punished if Puddleshine dies?" He shook his head. "Then why say something like that?"

"How else am I supposed to react when I learned that you're feeding our medicine cat deathberries?" He asked. "We're still friends, Asuna. I'd never hurt you unless it was necessary." He looked at her slyly. "Did _you_ really mean it when you said you'd take as much lives from me as you could to protect Alderheart?" She shook her head.

"I'd be hurting Dovewing and your kits if I did that…but I'd fight my hardest to give Alderheart a chance to escape if it came to it." She answered. "I'm glad you actually still care about our friendship."

"Why wouldn't I? You've done so much for this Clan back then, and for me. It's really impossible to hate a cat like you." Tigerstar's gaze became serious. "If you think that deathberries will help Puddleshine, then I trust you. I know you'd never do anything to harm him."

"Thank you, Tigerstar." Asuna mewed with a smile. "I should get going to pick out those herbs now."

"Yeah. Be careful out there, Asuna."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Lucina leapt across the forest floor towards the unsuspecting mouse. With a swift bite to the neck, she killed the prey. The she-cat had gone out on a hunting patrol with Lionblaze and Brackenfur.

"Nice catch, Lucina." Lionblaze commented. "Y'know, for being Twolegs, a lot of you cats from different worlds are quick on your paws."

"I'm sure it comes with being used to this form." She replied after dropping her mouse. "Still…I'm in awe that I'm experiencing this. Being a cat is something I would never in a million years expect to happen to me."

"We all said the same thing when Lelouch first came to ThunderClan." Brackenfur stated. "Well, not the same thing, but the fact that there's a warrior in our Clan that's actually a Twoleg. It's strange, yet interesting at the same time."

"I can imagine the shock. Did it take you all a while to believe him?" Lionblaze shook his head. "Really?"

"Our leader at the time, Firestar, knew that Lelouch was part of a prophecy. He told us that he was sent to help the Clans, but even before that we took him in with open paws." The golden tabby tom meowed. "After that, whenever we see cats from different worlds, we don't question it."

"But don't you think that trust might someday put you in danger?" Lucina asked. "What if some cat lies about being from a different world and brings about chaos?"

"Usually they have some easy signs to tell that they aren't Clan cats, like your tiara or anything that Noctis is wearing." Brackenfur answered. "If there's nothing, then usually Bramblestar or one of the medicine cats would receive some sort of sign from StarClan."

"Or in the case of every cat except for Lelouch: Spottedleaf." Lionblaze added. "I still don't understand how you all can speak with her."

"Don't you speak with StarClan in your dreams? When I spoke to her with the others, we were all asleep at the time."

"Usually that's the case…but none of us are able to speak with her." Brackenfur stated. "During the battle with the Dark Forest, she had died a second time in protecting Sandstorm, Firestar's mate. She's the first case we've ever known of a StarClan warrior dying."

"After that, we all assumed she disappeared, until Lelouch told us he could speak with her." Lionblaze stated. "My guess is that she's a second StarClan for cats not from this world."

"I didn't know her story was so sad." Lucina mewed. "I'm not sure what I must do next to help the Clans, but I must try my best for her."

"I'm sure you will, Lucina. You have a heroic aura to you, a bit more than some of the others, actually." Lionblaze said. "We should—." The tom stopped when he heard a nearby yowl.

"Hey! Is anybody nearby? We need to speak with Bramblestar!" The voice called out.

"We should go check that out." Picking up their prey, the three cats followed the voice. As they walked, they could taste SkyClan's scent in the air. When they reached the border, they saw that it was Hawkwing, along with Violetshine, Sagenose, and Macgyver. They were all surprised to see Finleap with them.

"Finleap? What are you doing with them?" Brackenfur asked.

"We don't mean to interrupt your hunting." Hawkwing apologized. "Do you mind taking us to your camp?"

"Not at all. Just follow us." Lionblaze turned around and began guiding the SkyClan cats to camp.

When they arrived, Lucina dropped off her prey in the fresh-kill pile. She looked over at Finleap as he and the SkyClan cats were approached by Bramblestar. _I didn't even notice that Finleap was missing. I wonder why he was with SkyClan._

"Hey, Lucina." The she-cat turned around and saw that it was Noctis. "What happened with Finleap?"

"I'm not sure. Lionblaze, Brackenfur, and I were out hunting and we heard Hawkwing call for someone to escort them here. We saw Finleap with them at the time."

"Had a feeling he went missing. Twigbranch said something before about his sister being sick, so my guess is that he wanted to make sure he was okay."

"If that's the case, I hope he doesn't get into too much trouble." She meowed. "Noctis...has Spottedleaf talked to you ever since we last saw her?"

"Me? No. Has she talked to you?" Lucina shook her head. "You worried?"

"It's not that I'm worried. I just don't like having to anticipate when the Clans are going to be in danger. She said our quest here wasn't complete, but so far the only problem that's occurred is Alderheart and Asuna going to ShadowClan."

"Yeah, I get what you mean. I wish everything would just happen so we can save the Clans already." The tom looked over at the fresh-kill pile. "I'll take the mouse you just caught, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. I hope it's to your liking."

"You and me both. I'm starving." Noctis picked up the mouse and rested near the warriors' den.

"Noctis, can you come over here for a second?" Bramblestar meowed as the tom was going to take the first bite of his mouse. He let out a sigh and walked over to him. He saw that Twigbranch was there as well. "Did you know anything about Finleap leaving?"

"No. I knew that Reedclaw was sick, that's all." Noctis meowed.

"Alright." The leader looked over at the gray she-cat. "Twigbranch, you'll help Finleap clean out the elder's den for the next moon. You should've said something when you noticed." Noctis could see the sadness in the she-cat's eyes. He gave Violetshine and Hawkwing a nod as a way of greeting them before he headed back to his prey. He saw that Lucina was now there as well, a thrush between her paws.

"I hope you don't mind."

"You're good." He meowed as he rested down and took a bite of his mouse. "Yeah, it's great, Lucina." She let out a smile.

"I'm happy to hear that." She said as she picked some of the feathers off of her prey. "What did Bramblestar need you for?"

"He was wondering if I knew about Finleap leaving. Twigbranch, Finleap, and I are pretty much associated with each other at this point, so I don't blame him." He told her. "At least they didn't get in too much trouble. Cleaning out the elder's den for a month isn't so bad."

"Yes, but that also means less training for Flypaw and Snappaw." Lucina reminded him.

"Right, didn't think about that." The tom realized. As the two continued eating, Noctis noticed a sudden look of worry in Lucina's eyes. "What's up?"

"I was just thinking about Alderheart and Asuna. I hope that Puddleshine is at least feeling somewhat better."

"That makes two of us."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Alderheart! Asuna! Come quick!" Cloverfoot called from the entrance. Asuna was checking over Puddleshine, while Alderheart had fallen asleep. She made her way out of the den and looked over at the she-cat.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"It's Shadowkit. "Something's…" Knowing that one of Dovewing's kits was in trouble was more than enough for her to rush towards the nursery.

"Asuna, thank StarClan you're here. Where's Alderheart?" Tigerstar asked.

"He's been working hard, so I let him rest while I looked over Puddleshine." She answered. "Where's Shadowkit?"

"Over here." Asuna walked over to where Dovewing was and saw that the convulsing body of the gray tabby. "I'll need one cat to help me hold him down. Dovewing, can you hold his head for us?" The she-cat did as instructed, Tigerstar helping Asuna. "It'll be better if you hold his shoulders down." She informed the leader. He nodded and moved his paws over to the kit's shoulders. "Cloverfoot, I'll need thyme. The fresher, the better." The she-cat nodded and headed over to the medicine den. Asuna looked down at the kit, and then over at Dovewing and Tigerstar. "Is he sick? Does he have a cough? A fever? Dovewing shook her head.

"This has happened before." Tigerstar stated.

"It has? No sickness whatsoever?" Asuna asked in surprise.

"Shadowkit's had visions before. They always end up occurring with seizures like the one he's going through now." Concern filled her green gaze. "I thought that they'd be getting better, but I'm not so sure anymore." Asuna noticed the kit's tremors begin to ease. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt his breath touch her coat.

"He'll be okay. I'm giving him thyme to ease his shock, but I'm not sure how to alleviate his seizures." She meowed. "You should also try and cool him down as well." Cloverfoot returned with the thyme, giving it to Asuna. She placed it in front of Dovewing. "When he's stabilized, chew up some of this and give it to him."

"And make sure he swallows it, right?" Dovewing meowed. "Puddleshine gave him some thyme before."

"Right. I really wish there was something I could do, but I can only ease the shock that he'll go through." From the entrance to the nursery, Alderheart ran inside.

"What happened? Is everything okay?" He asked.

"Asuna has everything under control." The ShadowClan leader told him.

"Shadowkit was having a seizure." Asuna mewed. "Dovewing told me that they come when he has visions. There's no way I can stop them if there's no medical reason for them."

"You should've woke me up, at least to help." The tom told her.

"You deserve rest as well. I'd only wake you if I knew I needed help, Alderheart." Asuna looked over and saw that Shadowkit's eyes slowly began to open. Dovewing began to lick his head to warm him. "Hi, Shadowkit. Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm alright." He assured them as he got to his paws. "I had another vision." He said, looking over at Tigerstar. Dovewing began to chew up the thyme leaves and brought her face close to the kit.

"Eat this. It'll make you feel better."

"Not until I tell you about my vision." The tom meowed, avoiding the herbs. Tigerstar looked over at Cloverfoot.

"Can you go check on the kits?" He asked. She nodded and left the den. "You both should leave as well."

"Wait…can they stay?" Shadowkit wondered, looking over at Alderheart and Asuna. "They're both medicine cats, so they might have an idea about my vision."

"I think we should let them." Dovewing meowed. Tigerstar nodded his head.

"Okay. What did you see, Shadowkit?"

"I was in RiverClan territory. It was raining a lot, too. I was in the marshes there, and the rain just got worse and worse. The sky was pitch black, and I couldn't see a thing." The kit's body began to tremble. "The rain began to get so high that my whole body was in the water. After that, it filled my nose, and then filled my mouth. I couldn't breathe at all…and then…everything faded to black." He looked over at Asuna. "Do you know what it means, Asuna?"

"I wish I could tell you I did, Shadowkit." Asuna meowed, but inside she knew what it meant. _It sounds like he might die…but why would he be given such a horrid vision?_ She looked over at Alderheart. "Alderheart, what do you think?"

"It's probably just a nightmare from the seizure he had." He stated.

"Right, that's all it was, Shadowkit." Dovewing meowed, giving his ear a lick. "It was just a nightmare. Nothing to be afraid of."

"But…it felt like it was real." He told her.

"Just eat the thyme and get some rest. You'll feel better soon." The dark ginger tom assured him.

"My head hurts, too."

"I'll go fetch some poppy seeds." He meowed before leaving. As she watched Dovewing care for her kit, Asuna felt Tigerstar tap her on the shoulder with his tail.

"Can we talk?" She nodded, Tigerstar giving Shadowkit a comforting lick before leaving the den with the she-cat. "It's about the vision Shadowkit had. Do you think it was just a nightmare?" Asuna shook her head.

"If he's had visions before, it has to be something more than that. I just didn't want to scare Dovewing, or you for that matter." She let out a sigh. "Still…why would he be given a vision of his own death?"

"Do you think it could mean something else?" He asked.

"I'd hope so. It might be figurative and he represents something bigger, like a Clan or something."

"How sure are you of that?" She shook her head.

"I can't be entirely sure, Tigerstar. I'm sorry."

"Is he destined to drown like my brother, Flametail? Would StarClan make me live through something like that again?" Alderheart left the medicine den and saw the two talking. He ignored them, but quickened his pace to give Shadowkit the poppy seeds. Once he was done, he joined the two.

"Alderheart, you don't think his vision was a nightmare, right?" Asuna asked, the tom shaking his head.

"Whatever Shadowkit saw, it's something that needs to be avoided. It's almost like Lucina's visions that she had, but instead…"

"Shadowkit's seeing his own death." Tigerstar muttered.

"It can mean something else entirely. We just can't be sure." Alderheart assured him.

"Yeah…" Tigerstar turned towards the nursery. "Thank you both for your help. Get some rest." The two made their way back to the medicine den, Alderheart resting down on his nest.

"Do you think you can go back to sleep?" The she-cat asked.

"I don't know. What Shadowkit saw could mean multiple things, I just hope his death isn't what the vision meant."

"You and me both."

Days had passed ever since Shadowkit's vision. During that time, Asuna was happy to see the deathberry treatment slowly beginning to show progress. However, during that time, there was more trouble between ShadowClan and SkyClan. A ShadowClan hunting patrol returned injured by SkyClan warriors due to the territory dispute the two Clans had.

"Does that feel better?" Asuna asked Grassheart as she applied a goldenrod poultice to her wound.

"Yes. Thank you, Asuna." She let out a sigh. "Those SkyClan cats are vicious."

"I can tell." The cream she-cat looked around the medicine den and saw the other injured cats who were a part of the patrol. As much as she wanted to point out that trespassing was their fault, Asuna just tended to their wounds. "Blazepaw, did Alderheart check on you?"

"No." The young tom meowed.

"Your wounds are pretty deep, Grassheart. I'll need you to stay in here for a bit so Alderheart and I can watch over you." Asuna told her before motioning the apprentice over with her tail. Her hazel eyes glowed, the apprentice looking at her in awe.

"Whoa! What's going on with your eyes?"

"I'm checking over you for wounds. I see a few scratches, but they don't seem too deep." She meowed. "The only wound that needs to be looked at is the cut on your ear." She walked over to the storage and took out a small piece of goldenrod. She began to chew it up and then applied it to his ear. "Does that hurt?"

"Nope. It feels nice, actually." He told her. "So...is that thing with your eyes what Tigerstar told me about before?"

"He told you about me?" She asked as she walked over to the storage for some cobwebs.

"Yeah. Back at my old home in the city, he told me about how you weren't from here and that you had awesome powers!"

"I don't know if awesome is the right word to describe them." Asuna meowed as she began to apply the cobwebs to his injured ear. "So, do you enjoy living in ShadowClan now, Blazepaw?"

"Yup! I do miss everyone back home, but being a warrior is great!" He stated.

"Just don't get too reckless now, okay?" She told him once she was done. "There, all patched up."

"Great! Thanks, Asuna!" The tom ran out of the den, the she-cat letting out a sigh.

"Does he remind you of Kirito?" Alderheart said with a small laugh as he was looking over Strikestone.

"Definitely. I've never seen a cat so excited before." She replied. "I hope he and Suguha are doing okay."

"I'm sure they're fine." The tom assured her. "The same can be said for you, Strikestone. No deep wounds at all. Just some bleeding, but the poultice I applied should prevent infection."

"Thank you, Alderheart." The tom meowed before leaving the den. Alderheart unwrapped the borage leaf holding the deathberries and tore some of the flesh away, giving it to Puddleshine.

"You both don't know how grateful I am, really." The ShadowClan medicine cat told them before eating the piece of the toxic fruit. "I'd be dead if it wasn't for the idea you both came up with."

"We're just relieved it worked." Asuna said. "Your fever's still there, but it's slowly going away. Give it a few more days and once it's gone it's just rest from then on." _I'm so glad that Puddleshine's feeling better…but still, the dispute between ShadowClan and SkyClan can possibly escalate further. I really hope it doesn't get worse._

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Lelouch made his way back to camp alongside Molewhisker, Brightheart, and Hollytuft after going out on border patrol. They found no traces of WindClan, SkyClan, or ShadowClan on their territory, which was always a relief. He walked over to the nursery to see check up on Ivypool, Foxkit, and Swiftkit. When he saw them, he noticed that Ivypool and Foxkit were sleeping, but he saw no sign of Swiftkit. _Maybe she's playing hide-and-seek._ He thought, looking around the den. He checked all around, but the kit's scent was faint.

"Swiftkit? Swiftkit where are you?" He called out, causing Ivypool to wake up.

"Lelouch, what's wrong?"

"It's Swiftkit. I don't know where she is!"

"What?!" Worry filled the she-cat's blue eyes. "This is my fault. I shouldn't have fell asleep!"

"I should've been paying closer attention as well." Daisy apologized.

"You both don't worry. I'll go look for her." Lelouch ran out of the den and quickly looked around.

"Father, what's wrong?" Nightheart ran when she saw how worried he was.

"Have you seen your sister?" He asked, the she-cat shaking her head.

"The last time I saw her, she was asleep with Foxkit and mother." She told him. "Is she missing?" The tom nodded. "Oh no! She has to be here somewhere!"

"Do you know where Kirito is? He might be able to track her."

"He's out hunting with some of the others." She informed him. "I can ask Suguha and Lucina to help us." Nightheart ran over to the warriors' den and quickly explained to them what was going on. Once she did, the three she-cats ran over to the tom.

"She can't be far…I hope." The tom meowed.

"What happened?" Molewhisker wondered as he watched the cats group together.

"Swiftkit's missing. We could use any help we can." Nightheart told him.

"Do you want me to find some others who can help?" He asked, Lelouch shaking his head.

"I don't want to cause everyone to worry." The violet-eyed tom replied. "Let's just go and look for her." He led the group to the camp exit, Squirrelflight looking at them with curiosity.

"Where are you all going?" She asked.

"Swiftkit's missing." Lelouch stated. "Please don't tell Bramblestar. I don't want the whole Clan worrying unless we can't find her."

"Are you sure? We'd all be more than willing to look for her, Lelouch." The deputy told him.

"I'm sure. Swiftkit was probably bound to wander into the forest one of these days."

"Okay, but the moment you feel you can't find her, please come back to camp." He gave her a nod before he made his way into the forest with the others.

"We should split up to cover more ground. Nightheart, you and Molewhisker check near SkyClan. Lucina and Suguha, check near our border with WindClan." The cats all left, Lelouch letting out a sigh. _She has to be around here._

"Lelouch!" He turned and saw that it was Ivypool.

"What are you doing here?"

"She's our daughter. I'm not going to let you look for her alone." She meowed. "Daisy's looking after Foxkit, don't worry."

"Good. I asked the others to look around our borders with other Clans, leaving us with the middle of our territory." He told her, the she-cat simply replying with a nod before they began to look.

"Swiftkit? Where are you? Lelouch and I are worried about you!" Ivypool called out as the two walked through the forest. As they were walking, Lelouch stopped and tasted the air, Ivypool doing the same. The two both looked at each other when they realized that they were on the right track, the kit's scent getting stronger.

"Swiftkit? We're not mad at you. Please come out!" Lelouch meowed as they continued walking.

"Mom? Dad? I'm over here!" They heard the kit call out. They passed through a few more rows of trees before they found the small kit looking up at the Ancient Oak. "This tree is huge!"

"What are you doing out here wandering by yourself?" Ivypool questioned the kit.

"I thought dad said you both weren't mad at me!"

"It's hard not to be when you're here alone." Lelouch stated. "We were both so worried about you. What if something happened?"

"I've learned lots of hunting and battle skills already!" She assured them.

"That's no reason to leave camp, Swiftkit." Her mother told her. "I know you can't wait to become an apprentice, but for now you have to wait a few moons."

"Okay…" Her parents pressed close to her.

"Please don't leave the den anymore, Swiftkit. The last thing I need is to find out that you're lost." Lelouch meowed.

"You don't have to worry about that, dad. Look." The kit walked over to a nearby trail of leaves. "See? I've been placing leaves behind me ever since I left camp so I'd know how to get back. I made sure to clear the other leaves out of the way, too." The kit's parents looked over at the trail before looking at each other.

"We were too worried to notice." The tom said, letting out a sigh.

"Think of it this way: She's showing signs of her father's intelligence." Ivypool meowed with a laugh.

"If it decided to show by her sneaking out of camp, I hope you become a warrior soon." The kit let out a big smile. "C'mon, we should go look for the others so they know you're alright."

Over by the lake, Nightheart and Molewhisker looked around, hoping that there would be some sign of where Swiftkit was.

"We haven't caught her scent around here at all!" Nightheart wailed. "Swiftkit, please come out! We're worried sick about you!" She called out, but there was no sound or movement around the two. Nightheart collapsed onto the grass, her head in her paws. "I should've been watching her knowing how tired mother was!" Molewhisker walked over to the she-cat and placed his tail on her shoulder.

"Her wandering off isn't your fault, Nightheart. She's a kit, so it's normal for her to want to explore." He assured her. "You were the same way when you were her age."

"Yes, but I never made it past the camp exit. Mother and the others always watched over me. I just wish I did the same for my sister."

"Blaming yourself isn't going to help find her. Besides, it's possible that the others found her. Knowing that she wasn't around here is a good thing. It means she didn't wander into the lake, or towards SkyClan."

"I guess you're right." She wiped her tears away from her violet eyes before getting to her paws. "I'm sorry for crying, Molewhisker."

"Seriously? Your sister is missing. Crying isn't something you should be apologizing for." He assured her. "We'll find her Nightheart, I promise."

The violet-eyed she-cat let out a smile. "You're very sweet, Molewhisker. Thank you." A blush formed on the tom's face as the she-cat pressed closer to him. She looked over at him and noticed the embarrassed look on his face, causing her to become flustered. "I-I'm sorry for getting too close!"

"N-No, it's fine, Nightheart." He stammered. "Thanks for the compliment. It means a lot coming from you." Nightheart's violet eyes gazed over at the brown and cream tom. "Nightheart, do—."

"Nightheart! Molewhisker!" The she-cat stopped when she heard her father call out for them both.

"What were you saying, Molewhisker?" The she-cat asked. The tom shook his head.

"It's nothing. We should probably see why Lelouch is calling us." The two turned back towards the forest and followed the tom's scent. A spark of relief hit Nightheart when she noticed Swiftkit's scent mingling as well.

"He found her!" Nightheart broke into a run, the tom chasing after her. When they reached them, they saw that Ivypool was with him as well, the kit riding on Lelouch's back. "Swiftkit!" Nightheart gave her sister a lick to the ear. "I was so worried about you! I thought something bad happened!"

"I'm sorry, Nightheart. I wanted to get back before dad returned, but I stayed out too long." The kit apologized.

"All I care about is that you're safe." She meowed before looking over at Ivypool. "Mother, I didn't know you were with father."

"I followed you all out of camp. Your father was in such a rush that I couldn't join you all in time." She explained. "At least you were somewhat close by still. We were hoping you didn't search through all of this side of ThunderClan territory."

"So, where was this little one anyway?" Molewhisker asked, touching noses with the kit.

"By the Ancient Oak. The shock of the size of it stopped her exploration." Lelouch told him. "The surprising part is that she created a trail of leaves to find her way back to camp."

"Really? You're such a smart kit, Swiftkit." Nightheart commented with a laugh.

"Thanks, and you know what else I got from this? One long badger ride from dad!" She pressed into her dad's coat.

"Don't get used to it. The next time this happens I'll make you walk back to camp." He told her, causing Swiftkit to pout. "We still have to tell Suguha and Lucina. I hope they didn't get too far."

Lucina and Suguha reached ThunderClan's border stream with WindClan, the two catching no trace of the missing kit.

"You don't think she fell into the stream, do you?" Suguha mewed with worry.

"I'm positive. Swiftkit definitely knows better than that." Lucina assured her. "Still, I hope nothing bad happened to her."

"She must be so scared being all alone. Hopefully this is the last time she does something like this. Nightheart was so worried when she told us to help. For her sake, we need to look harder." The blue-gray she-cat nodded.

"You both are really close. She's lucky to have a friend like you, Suguha."

"I'm not the only one close to her. You've been close with Nightheart ever since you came to ThunderClan, Lucina." The black she-cat meowed. "You both even act similar, too. I might actually be a bit jealous." She joked with a small laugh.

"Well try not to. Nightheart appreciates you so much. You've spent time with her longer, after all." Lucina stated. "Let's go back into the forest and look around one more time before reporting back to the others." The two turned back towards ThunderClan's camp and scouted the area meticulously. As they were searching, Lucina noticed Suguha suddenly stop. "Suguha? Is everything okay?"

"It's nothing. We should be searching for Swiftkit."

"We might not be able to do a sufficient job if something's bothering you. Besides, we haven't scented her yet, either. It can be safe to say that she hasn't been here." The she-cat assured her. "What's bothering you?"

"Leaving this world." She meowed. "Spottedleaf told us that our final mission was going to happen soon, but I don't know if I could take leaving Nightheart and the others. We've grown so close to each other after being here for so long."

"It must be especially difficult for you, Asuna, and Kirito. You've been here the longest."

"Don't you feel that way too, Lucina? I know you haven't been here as long as me, but you have to somewhat feel the same way." She nodded.

"I do. Nightheart's been so sweet ever since I came to this world. I just hope she doesn't hurt too much when we leave."

"Lucina! Suguha! Hello?" The two looked at each other in surprise.

"Was that…Swiftkit?" The black she-cat wondered, the kit's scent as strong as ever now.

"I'm sure of it. Let's go, Suguha!" The two followed the scent until they reached the others who went out looking for the kit. "Oh, you're with the others already."

"Mother and father found her. Thank StarClan she wasn't too far." Nightheart meowed.

"She was over by the Ancient Oak." Lelouch informed the two before looking over at the kit. "Swiftkit, tell Lucina and Suguha that you're sorry."

"Sorry you two. I hope you weren't too worried…although you didn't need to be."

"Swiftkit…" Ivypool meowed. "Please don't tell me you inherited my stubbornness. Mixing that with your father's intelligence is a bad combination."

"She made a path of leaves to lead her back to camp when she was ready to leave." Molewhisker told the two she-cats.

"Well that _is_ smart, but please try to think of how much your actions may affect others, Swiftkit." Lucina meowed.

"Okay…" Ivypool gave the kit a lick to the ear.

"It's normal for kits to be excited, but please let this be the last time, Swiftkit. We were all worried, and so were the others back at camp, especially Foxkit."

"Oh…" There was sadness in the kit's voice. "Can we go back home now? I want to say sorry to him." Lelouch gave her a comforting lick to the ear.

"Yeah. I'm sure he'll appreciate that."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

 _Alderheart ripped off a_ piece of flesh from a deathberry, pushing it towards Puddleshine. Both he and Asuna were relieved that this dosage would be one of the tom's last. He buried the berry's seed with the others that he hid before looking over at Shadowkit. The tom had volunteered to help Alderheart and Asuna in the medicine den, and he seemed to enjoy it.

"Remember, you're not supposed to come over to this side of the den." The tom reminded the kit. Shadowkit gave him a nod before he went to help Asuna sort out some of the herbs. The kit seemed to perform the duties naturally, even only after being taught briefly. As he was working, Pouncekit and Lightkit ran into the den.

"Shadowkit, hurry! We're getting badger rides from Strikestone and Blazepaw!" Lightkit meowed.

"Yeah! You've missed so much fun ever since you've been helping Asuna and Alderheart." Pouncekit added.

"It's okay. I'm having fun in here." He assured his siblings.

"What? Just sorting herbs and watching sick cats all day?" The gray kit questioned, her brother nodding.

"Asuna and Alderheart are teaching me so much. One day I'm going to become a medicine cat." He told them.

"And you'll be a great one. I'm sure Puddleshine will be more than happy to have you as his apprentice." Asuna meowed. "But you are just a kit now, Shadowkit. You won't have time to play at all once you become a medicine cat."

"Asuna's right." Alderheart said. "You'll be too old for badger rides eventually. You should go out and have fun with your siblings."

"That's okay. I want to stay here and help you two." He assured them. Lightkit let out a sigh.

"C'mon, we're wasting our badger ride time waiting." She told her sister with a nudge before the two left.

"Are you sure you don't want to go out with them, Shadowkit? The medicine den isn't going anywhere." The cream she-cat told him.

"Yeah." The two older cats looked at each other before sharing a smile at the kit's enthusiasm to learn more.

"Alright then. Can you fetch some marigold for Grassheart?"

"Do you remember what it looks like?" Asuna asked, the kit nodding before heading over to the herb storage. "He's going to make a great medicine cat."

"If he even gets to that point." Alderheart replied, worry in his meow. Asuna remembered about the kit's vision and how it was possible that Shadowkit saw how he would die.

"I'm sure he will. There's no way StarClan would let a kit with such potential die."

"Is it this one?" The two looked over at the kit, marigold in his jaws.

"Perfect. Bring some over to Grassheart, please." Alderheart told the tom before walking over to Puddleshine. Nearby, he took a vole and stripped a piece off of it, pushing it towards the sick cat. "Can you eat?"

"Yes, but it might take a while before my appetite returns." Puddleshine meowed, slowly chewing the piece of prey. "I can't thank you both enough for taking care of the den while I'm sick."

"It's no trouble at all, Puddleshine. We're both more than happy to help." Asuna meowed. She heard Grassheart let out a groan as she woke up.

"Can I chew up the marigold, Asuna?" Shadowkit asked her.

"You're still too young to do that. It's a very strong herb."

"So…can I rub it on her wound?" Grassheart slowly lifted her head up and looked at Asuna.

"My side hurts." She told her, wincing in pain.

"It'll feel better once we apply marigold to it. Luckily it's not infected." The she-cat stated before chewing up the herbs. As she was, Alderheart looked over at them.

"Shadowkit, why don't you fetch Grassheart and Puddleshine some water? I know they'll appreciate it."

"Okay!" Shadowkit grabbed a piece of moss and exited the den, Asuna applying the poultice of marigold into Grassheart's wound, the she-cat letting out a breath of relief as she rested her head down into the nest. _There has to be something me and the others can do to ease relations between SkyClan and ShadowClan._ She broke away from her thoughts when Tigerstar entered the den.

"Hey, I just saw Shadowkit leave here. I just wanted to—." He looked over at Puddleshine, the leader letting out a smile when he saw just how healthy the tom was getting. "Were you both just going to keep this to yourselves?" He asked as he walked over to the medicine cat. "How are you feeling?"

"Better, thanks to Alderheart and Asuna." The tom meowed. "I'm sorry for causing the Clan to worry. I shouldn't have been so mouse-brained and gone for the borage."

"Don't worry. We all only care that you're healthy." He assured the medicine cat before turning to face the other two medicine cats. "I can't thank you both enough for what you've done. I still can't believe the deathberry treatment actually worked. I'm more than grateful that you both came up with the idea and saved Puddleshine's life. Is there anything I can do for you both? Do you want to return to ThunderClan?"

"Once Puddleshine's ready to return to his duties. We're in no rush." Asuna assured him.

"We'd like to go to the Moonpool tonight to share with StarClan, if anything." Alderheart added, Tigerstar looking at them with shock.

"It's half-moon tonight! Of course you both can go! I'm sorry that it slipped my mind." He apologized, bowing his head. "You both can tell the others that Puddleshine is finally feeling better as well. I'm sure they'd appreciate the news." Shadowkit returned from the puddle, dropping off the moss in front of Grassheart and Puddleshine, walking over to the medicine cats afterwards.

"I heard that you both were going somewhere. Can I come?" He asked.

"Sorry, Shadowkit. We know you like helping, but this meeting is for medicine cats only. You're not there yet." Asuna meowed.

"Right, but hey, Puddleshine and Grassheart will need someone to look over them."

"Wait…so I'll be in charge of the medicine den?" The leader nodded. "Yes! I won't let you both down!"

"Just don't push yourself too hard. Tawnypelt will help you as well if you get tired." His father assured him.

"Don't worry, I'll be wide awake! I promise that Puddleshine and Grassheart will be taken care of."

"We're counting on you, Shadowkit." Asuna told him with a smile. _He can't die. His vision has to mean something else, it just has to!_

Asuna and Alderheart followed the path to the bottom of the Moonpool. They were the last cats to arrive, the other medicine cats waiting at the water's edge. Leafpool rushed over to the two as they made their way into the hollow.

"Thank StarClan you're both okay! How's Puddleshine doing?" She asked.

"His fever broke last night." Alderheart told her.

"That's great! I'm glad that you both were right about the treatment." The light brown tabby looked over at Asuna and followed her hazel gaze towards where Jayfeather was. "He's been unfocused ever since you both left. You should talk to him, Asuna. He's not the best at starting conversations." She noticed a bit of uncertainty in the she-cat's eyes. "Do you not forgive him?" Asuna stayed silent. "It's understandable if you don't, Asuna, but I know you will eventually."

"Let's just go share with StarClan. The others are waiting." She meowed, passing by the other two cats to join with the other medicine cats. Once they all walked over to the edge of the water, they touched their noses to it, breaking the calm surface.

A fierce wind blew through Asuna's coat as she found herself in the middle of a gusty rainstorm. She felt herself lifted off of her paws and brought down to the wet grass below her. Nearby in the clearing, she saw five saplings, each intertwined close together. She watched carefully as the saplings were able to resist the strong winds, despite their size. Eventually, a blast of wind blew through the clearing and one of the saplings became unearthed. One by one, each sapling was plucked out of the ground until none no longer stood. The rain and wind quickly subsided, the only thing in front of Asuna now being a blanket of green grass.

Asuna pulled herself away from the Moonpool and looked over at the others. They all did the same, until Alderheart awoke from his vision.

"The Clans have to stick together!" He exclaimed.

"I saw saplings in my vision." Willowshine stated.

"I did, too. The winds were so strong that they all blew away." Asuna meowed.

"It seems like we all shared the same vision." Jayfeather said. "What Alderheart says is right: the five Clans need to thrive. If one fails, they all do."

"But who could it be? Every Clan is fine." Kestrelflight meowed.

"That's not true." Asuna said. "SkyClan's been having trouble with ShadowClan."

"Thank you, Asuna." Frecklewish meowed. "You're all so blinded by the thought of only four Clans that you've forgotten about SkyClan! Didn't you hear what Tigerstar said at the last Gathering? It was anything but friendly."

"Isn't it just a territory dispute? Didn't you both work it out yet?" Leafpool asked.

"If you all can tell me a way to create more land, be my guest." The SkyClan medicine cat retorted. "There's no way Tigerstar will settle for less land, or that Leafstar will give up land."

"Isn't Tree helping you?" The WindClan medicine cat wondered, causing Frecklewish to scoff.

"There's nothing an outsider like him can help us with. He can't bring peace to the Clans on his own. We need help from the other Clans as well. This isn't just a problem between our two Clans, but ever Clan! If we can't get help, SkyClan will have no choice but to leave the lake."

"You can't!" Asuna quickly meowed. "The five Clans need to live together. We were told that by StarClan just now, and Spottedleaf told me and the others."

"Is it really that bad, Frecklewish?" Leafpool asked.

"Yes! Last night a ShadowClan patrol attacked our camp!" Asuna looked at the she-cat in astonishment. Even being in ShadowClan, she had no idea that they had sent out a patrol to attack them. "They destroyed our dens while we were asleep, and Leafstar doesn't even want to repair them because she thinks they'll just attack us again later. She says we might leave and return to the gorge."

"But we've worked so hard to bring your Clan here."

"Yes, and you've worked _so hard_ to keep us from leaving." She meowed defiantly.

"It's obvious what we need to do: We need to speak to our leaders and find a way to help SkyClan." Leafpool stated.

"Yeah. I'm sure Bramblestar can send some warriors to help rebuild your dens." Jayfeather added.

"Thank you, but that won't fix what ShadowClan has done."

"What do you mean?" Asuna tilted her head in confusion.

"They didn't only destroy our camp. They poisoned our prey, too. They tried killing us!"

"No! Tigerstar would never give out an order like that!" Asuna meowed frantically.

"Whatever happened, Violetshine saw Juniperclaw by our prey. When Sparrowpelt ate a vole, he was sick." She meowed. "Later on, when he vomited I saw seeds in it…deathberry seeds." Her gaze turned towards Asuna and Alderheart. "You both brought deathberries to ShadowClan to treat Puddleshine, didn't you?" The two stood there in silence. It was possible that some cat took some of the deathberries without them noticing…but how?

"Are you blaming them both on poisoning your Clanmate?" Jayfeather questioned.

"ShadowClan obtained the deathberries because of them!"

"No…we made sure to check whenever we used them if any were missing." Asuna said, fear in her voice. "We kept them well hidden and everything!"

"Did anyone see you both using them?" Leafpool asked.

"I don't know! Like Asuna said, we only kept track of how many berries were in the bundle we brought." Alderheart hoped he was right. If he was wrong and Sparrowpelt died, his blood would be on his and Asuna's paws. "None were missing. If Juniperclaw did use them to poison your fresh-kill, they didn't come from the supply we brought."

"Regardless of where he got them, we need to try and bring this violence between SkyClan and ShadowClan to a halt." Leafpool stated. "We need to call for an emergency Gathering."

"The last one didn't go so well." Willowshine stated.

"With the prophecy we were given and with the mission Asuna and the others were brought here to complete, I'm sure they can be persuaded." Jayfeather assured them. "We need to persuade our leaders."

"Bramblestar will cooperate. I'm sure of it." Leafpool meowed.

"So will Harestar. If StarClan wills it, he'll follow their word." Kestrelflight added.

"I wish I could say the same for Mistystar, but she's still a bit hesitant after the whole Darktail situation. I'll try my best."

"And Tigerstar?" Jayfeather's blind gaze looked over at Alderheart and Asuna. "Alderheart may have a hard time, but you're friends with him, Asuna. Can you persuade him?" The cream she-cat nodded.

"I'll do what I can."

"Good. Make sure to speak with your leaders, everyone. The fate of the Clans relies on every Clan cooperating." The blind tom meowed, the other medicine cats nodding in agreement. One by one they began to leave the Moonpool. Asuna and Alderheart joined Jayfeather and Leafpool as they made their way back to camp.

When they reached the tunnel leading into ThunderClan, Leafpool and Jayfeather said goodbye to the two.

"Asuna." As they were walking away, the she-cat turned around and saw that it was Jayfeather. "Can we talk?" The she-cat looked over at Alderheart, the tom nodding his head, letting out a hopeful smile. She walked over to the tom.

"Yes, Jayfeather?" The tom moved his blind gaze away from her hazel eyes.

"I'm…sorry for what I said to you about Briarlight. It wasn't right, and I hurt you in saying that." He apologized. "I should never had said that, especially after you finally were ready to return to the medicine den with us. I've said a few hurtful things to you…but they were strong enough to not warrant any forgiveness from you. If you don't forgive me, it's okay. I just…don't know if I can live with you hating me, Asuna."

"Jayfeather…" The she-cat pressed her head on the tom's shoulder, his face suddenly growing hot. "I know that you didn't mean what you said. You were just worried, and sometimes that makes you say things. Leafpool told me that you haven't been as proficient in the medicine den ever since Alderheart and I left."

"Y-Yeah. I've been worried about how to apologize to you, or if would be enough. I was ready to live knowing that you hated me for the rest of your time here."

"So you weren't at all worried about me?" Alderheart meowed from afar.

"Hey, don't start with me." Jayfeather growled, causing Asuna to giggle. "So…I'm guessing you forgive me?"

"Yes. I should be honest and tell you that I wasn't ready to talk to you…but I shouldn't hold a grudge against you." She admitted.

"It would've been fine if you didn't. I still don't think I deserve to talk to you right now, honestly." He said. "But…thanks for accepting my apology, Asuna."

"Of course." She said with a smile before it suddenly disappeared. "You didn't get hurt when I pinned you, right?"

"No, I'm fine. Well, not until I realized you were crying. I'll probably never stop apologizing to you until you finally leave back to your own world."

"Don't. With a temper like yours, I know that you didn't mean what you said." She assured him.

"You're too kind, you know that?" He told her. "Maybe try being less kind so I stop having feelings for you."

"Sorry Jayfeather. You're going to have to live with that." Asuna said with a laugh. "Alderheart and I will be back once Puddleshine's ready to return to his duties. It shouldn't be long."

"Right. Be safe, Asuna. Hopefully Tigerstar isn't too aggressive when you speak with him."

"I'll be fine." She touched her nose to the tom's cheek. "Goodnight, Jayfeather." The she-cat joined Alderheart, and the two made their way back to ShadowClan.

When they returned to camp, Alderheart looked over at Asuna. There was a hint of worry in his amber eyes. He hoped that the friendship she and Tigerstar shared was enough to be able to persuade him about stopping the dispute with SkyClan.

"Get some rest, Alderheart."

"Okay. Good luck, Asuna." The cream she-cat padded over to the leader's den. _This has to work. Tigerstar can't be that selfish now, can he?_ She entered the den and saw the tom resting down on his nest.

"Hi, Asuna. What's up?" He greeted the she-cat.

"I need to talk to you." The tom nodded and pointed his tail over at the spot in front of him. She rested down, hazel and amber eyes meeting. "Tonight, the medicine cats and I were given a prophecy. There were five saplings, holding on for dear life in a massive storm. They seemed sturdy together…but when one was pulled out, the same happened to the others. We believe that the five saplings represent the Clans, and if one falls, so will the others."

"Do you have any idea how the fall of one of the Clans is going to happen?" He asked the she-cat.

"It's already happening, and you have the power to stop it, Tigerstar."

"What are you—." The tom realized the point she was trying to make. "This is about our land dispute with SkyClan, isn't it?"

"Yes! Frecklewish told us about what happened last night. Did you really send a patrol to destroy their camp?" The tom fell silent. "Tigerstar!"

"What else am I supposed to do?" He retorted. "They attacked our hunting patrol first. They deserved what happened to them."

"Did they deserve to be poisoned as well?"

"What are you talking about?"

"One of their cats fell ill after eating a vole. Frecklewish said that it was because of deathberries." The tom's eyes widened in shock, the same look forming on the she-cat's face. "You didn't know, did you?"

"Of course not! I'd never rely on such a cowardly tactic, you know that, Asuna." He assured her. "None of the deathberries you and Alderheart used were missing, right?"

"We think so. We've tried our best to keep track of them." She meowed, her gaze becoming stern. "Tigerstar, please try to make amends with SkyClan. If not, the Clans will all be destroyed." The tom avoided the she-cat's gaze.

"Our Clan needs land, Asuna, or else we'll starve in the future. I'll do what I think is best for my Clan before I help the others." He stated. "I know it sounds wrong to you…but this is the choice I have to make as leader of ShadowClan."

"But if you don't help, there will be no ShadowClan!" She responded.

"If I help, ShadowClan will be the one to fall, and then the others will follow." Tigerstar responded. "SkyClan wouldn't be here if I never told my father to offer our land to them. The least they could do is remember that." He let out a sigh. "I know you're trying to change my mind, Asuna, but it's been made up. I'm sorry that we don't agree."

"It's okay." The she-cat got up and left the leader's den, worry in her mind. _I know I'm supposed to be trying to help…but Tigerstar's right. Right now, SkyClan will be the one to fall, but if Tigerstar does give them land, ShadowClan will fall. There has to be a way to keep every Clan around the lake._

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Lucina's paws trekked through the shore's pebbly surface as he walked alongside Kirito, Suguha, Lelouch, and Noctis. Before the five woke up, they each seemed to share a dream. They all went to the medicine den to speak with Leafpool and Jayfeather and found out that it was the same exact vision that they and the other medicine cats had the night before.

"So, we have to keep the Clans together, just like Spottedleaf told us." Kirito stated.

"Yes, but isn't it odd that we've received the same dream as the medicine cats?" Lucina questioned. "We were already given this task by Spottedleaf. Pair that with what Jayfeather and Leafpool told us about SkyClan wanting to leave…"

"And the Clans are going to be destroyed…just like the saplings." Suguha meowed with worry.

"Yeah, but what can we do about it? We don't exactly have control of every Clan's territory." Noctis said.

"The medicine cats all told their leaders about the prophecy, so it's up to them to figure this out. As much as I hate to admit it, we don't have much of a say in what happens tonight." Lelouch told them. "We can try to all intervene, but I'm not sure how far it'd go."

"It won't hurt to try. Our task is to keep the five Clans together and bring about peace, after all." The blue-gray she-cat said. The ThunderClan cats reached the fallen tree bridge and crossed onto the island. SkyClan was already there, along with WindClan and RiverClan.

"It seems like someone is popular with the she-cats." Suguha meowed, poking Noctis with her tail. The tom looked over at her.

"What? Wait…you were talking to _me?_ " Noctis looked around the clearing and saw cats from the other Clans staring at him before quickly looking away. "Not really sure how I feel about that."

"Did that not happen back in your world?" Lelouch asked.

"Girls fawning over me from afar? Don't think so."

"Really? I thought you were a prince? Girls are probably all over you. You just haven't noticed." Kirito told him.

"Are you jealous, Kazuto?" His cousin asked with a sly smile.

"No way! All the responsibilities Noct probably has? No thanks."

"Can't really say I have much, to be honest. I never got to that point. You know, saving the world and stuff." He reminded the tom.

"Excuse me." The cats turned around and saw that it was Mothwing.

"Hey. Are you here to see Noct?" Kirito wondered, pushing the tom forward. Suguha hit the tom with a paw.

"You idiot! That's Mothwing! You know, one of RiverClan's medicine cats?" The black she-cat meowed, causing Mothwing to laugh.

"That's okay. Some of my Clanmates are probably jealous that I'm this close to you three right now." She said, looking over at the three toms.

"Wait…cats in RiverClan like him?" Suguha asked in surprise, pointing a tail at her cousin.

"Most of the younger she-cats do. Some of the others talk about how great he and Noctis fought during our battle with the rouges. They really wish you both could show them some of your battle moves one day."

"Only if you teach us both how to fish in return." Noctis meowed with a smile.

"Oh yeah! We've always wanted to learn how to catch fish as cats!" Kirito stated.

"Maybe after we finish helping the Clans, you two." Lelouch told them. "Sorry that we got a bit off track, Mothwing. Did you need something?"

"I was wondering if I could speak with Lucina." She looked over at the blue-eyed she-cat, who replied with a nod. She stepped away from the others, Lucina following her.

"It's good to see that you're healing from the fire, Mothwing." Lucina told her.

"It's no thanks to you, Lucina. That's why I wanted to talk with you." She said. "I never got to thank you for saving me from the fire in RiverClan. I might not be here right now if it wasn't for you."

"You don't have to thank me. I was brought here to help the Clans in any way possible. I'm glad that I was able to save you in time more than anything." She meowed.

"Right." She looked over at the Great Oak. "I should get back over there with the other medicine cats. We don't usually mingle around."

"Oh, well I don't want you getting in trouble. It was nice to see you again, Mothwing." The golden she-cat smiled before making her way to the tree at the center of the island. From the corner of her eyes, she saw ShadowClan arrive on the island. She joined back with the others and waited for the arriving Clan to get situated on the island before the impromptu Gathering began.

"I'm sure every Clan knows about the vision our medicine cats received. Today, Lelouch, Lucina, Kirito, Suguha, and Noctis were given the same vision as well." Bramblestar stated. He looked over at the medicine cats and gave them a nod. Asuna stepped forward and gazed out at the Clan cats, her hazel eyes shining in the moonlight.

"Last night at the Moonpool, we were given a vision of five saplings in a powerful storm. Everything seemed well, until one was blown away. They all followed until there was none left standing. We agree that they represent the Clans. Without even one of the Clans, the others will end up disappearing."

"Yes, which is why we need to end conflict between the five Clans. It's the only way we all can thrive." Alderheart added.

"End conflict? That's impossible!" Mallownose spoke out.

"We're not all just one huge Clan!" Breezepelt added.

"How will we protect our borders, then?" Cloverfoot questioned.

"We're not asking for you not to protect borders. We're only asking for unnecessary conflicts to end." Asuna meowed. "ShadowClan and SkyClan don't need to be fighting with each other over land. At this point, it's every Clan's issue as well."

"Right. We shouldn't just be seeking conflict just for the sake of it. If we want to be united, we all need to stand together." Bramblestar stated.

"Of course that's easy for you to say, Bramblestar. ShadowClan will lose land and go hungry while your Clan thrives." Tigerstar retorted.

"Why does ShadowClan have to be the only Clan that suffers?" Juniperclaw questioned.

"Please! SkyClan has suffered more at the hands of your Clan! Frecklewish, tell everyone what happened a few nights ago." The SkyClan medicine cat stepped forward.

"ShadowClan had attacked our camp, and Sparrowpelt was poisoned by deathberry seeds." The Clan cats all looked at each other as a wave of uneasiness filled the island.

"Are you accusing my Clan of poisoning your Clanmate?" Tigerstar questioned. "Asuna had told me about this, and I will say the same thing I told her: ShadowClan would never rely on such a cowardly tactic!"

"Alderheart and Asuna were the ones who brought the berries to your camp. It would be easy for your warriors to retrieve them." Plumwillow stated.

"Asuna has told me that none of the deathberries were missing" Tigerstar assured them. "He must have eaten them by mistake before."

"I saw Juniperclaw by our fresh-kill pile." Violetshine's voice broke through the island. "He was there when our camp was raided."

"Does your Clan have any proof?" Tigerstar asked. "When something bad happens to your Clanmates, your first instinct is to blame ShadowClan. Does your Clan know what it did to Grassheart? She's been in the medicine den ever since you attacked our patrol!"

"Attacked? You invaded our territory!" Leafstar spat. The two leaders began arguing back and forth, Bramblestar getting between the two, trying his best to stop them. The SkyClan leader snarled. "I don't even know why I brought my Clan over to the lake. We've abided by all the rules given to us, and yet every Clan treats us as if we don't belong! My Clan and I are sick of it!" She continued. "We've told you what ShadowClan has done to us, and yet nothing is being said! They can kill us off one by one and nothing will ever be done! That is why my Clan and I will be returning to the gorge." The leader announced.

"What? You can't leave!" Bramblestar meowed in disbelief.

"All is like it was long ago. Don't let SkyClan leave us again." Harestar stated.

"Why should we stop them? Things have been complicated ever since they arrived here. It's not like they won't be a part of the Clans anymore if they leave." Mistystar stated.

"Thank you for your honesty, albeit negative."

"ShadowClan's been honest ever since we've asked for our land back. If you must go, then leave." Tigerstar spat.

"No, you can't go!" Asuna called out. "Without SkyClan, the other Clans will be in danger!"

"We have to do something." Kirito meowed. "If we don't, we'll fail Spottedleaf, and the Clans."

"But what can we do? If they won't even listen to the medicine cats, why would they listen to us?" Suguha asked.

"I think I might have an idea…but it might not work." Lelouch stated, leaving the group of cats. He walked over to the front of the Ancient Oak. "Bramblestar, I have a suggestion."

"What is it?" The leader wondered, raising his tail to silence the others.

"The main issue between ShadowClan and SkyClan is land. If none are willing to give any up, maybe the other three Clans can give up some land as well in order to ease tensions." The ThunderClan leader nodded.

"I was thinking the exact same thing, Lelouch." He stated. "ThunderClan will give up some of its land to SkyClan." The ThunderClan cats were speaking amongst each other now, worried about their leader's decision. "Harestar, are you willing to do the same as well?"

"If StarClan is asking for five Clans to be together, I will do what I can to follow their wish." He replied. Lelouch looked over at Mistystar.

"Mistystar? It will benefit every other Clan if you do the same. It will show just how united the Clans are." The RiverClan leader shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but I've made my stance clear on the situation. My Clan believes that it'll be better for SkyClan to return to the gorge."

"Even knowing about the vision?" Lucina asked, running over to Lelouch's side. "Mistystar, please. The Clans will fall if we let SkyClan leave."

"We've lived through prophecies before. This is just another one of those cases." Tigerstar meowed, siding with the RiverClan leader. "ShadowClan will be taking our land back. SkyClan can stay and face the consequences, or leave."

"I won't let that happen." Noctis stated, joining the others. "I worked hard with Twigbranch to bring SkyClan to the lake. If you want to run them off because you're greedy for land, then you'll have to go through me."

"Us, too." Kirito added as he and Suguha stood to defend SkyClan. "Five Clans need to be around the lake, Tigerstar. We were told to help the five Clans live in peace, and that can't happen if there's only four Clans."

"Does Bramblestar agree with this decision?" Tigerstar questioned. "Are you siding with SkyClan?" He asked the ThunderClan leader.

"No, this is the stand we must make as heroes for the Clans. If you wish for them to leave, you are giving us no other choice." Lucina stated.

"Enough!" Leafstar's yowl broke through the island. "I appreciate the caring gesture that you five are making…but it's apparent that the support from each Clan isn't there. SkyClan will never belong with the other Clans along the lake."

"Please, don't make such a crucial decision, Leafstar." Bramblestar pleaded. "We can come up with a solution, I know it." Leafstar let out a sigh.

"Very well. I will talk with my Clan tonight and decide in the morning." The SkyClan leader leaped down from the Great Oak, cueing the end of the Gathering.

"What do we do now?" Suguha wondered, concern in her meow.

"We have to change Tigerstar and Mistystar's mind." Lucina said before looking over at the violet-eyed tom. "Lelouch, I remember Nightheart telling me that your Geass was the power to command anyone by looking into their eyes. Can't you use it here?"

"No. It'd be too much of a change in Mistystar and Tigerstar. It could cause trouble in their Clans. We'd need to change their minds ourselves."

"Yeah, that doesn't seem like it's going to happen in a day." Noctis stated. "So that's it? We just let SkyClan leave?"

"We don't seem to have another choice." Lelouch replied, worry in his gaze. "All we can do now is hope that we can save the rest of the Clans that are left."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

 _Dark clouds filled the sky_ above the lake, drops of rain gradually falling, coating the land. Alderheart and Asuna were giving the ShadowClan cats in the medicine den one last thorough check-up before they left and returned to ThunderClan.

"Alderheart, I really think that SkyClan is going to leave." Asuna meowed. "I've tried convincing Tigerstar…and even Leafstar declined help from the others."

"Yeah, I know…" The tom let out a sigh. "How could the leaders not take any of this seriously? The medicine cats and cats from different worlds all were given the same vision."

"Well, Tigerstar can't stop fighting for our claim on land. Our Clan is finally back to how it used to be, and we'll starve if we don't have land to hunt on." Grassheart meowed.

"But what Lelouch suggested made sense. If every Clan gave up some land, then territory would become more even and there wouldn't be any disputes." Puddleshine said.

"If Leafstar let us hunt on a part of their land, there wouldn't be a problem." Grassheart countered.

"That would lead to more issues in the future." Alderheart responded. They watched as a shadow approached the den, Tigerstar entering.

"How are your patients doing?" He asked the ThunderClan medicine cats.

"Grassheart's wound is getting better, and Puddleshine is almost fully recovered." Asuna told the ShadowClan leader. "Tigerstar…can you really not change your mind?" He shook his head.

"I'm afraid not. I know you and the others in ThunderClan are trying hard to keep SkyClan here…but like I told you before, I have to put ShadowClan first." He stated. "Asuna, Alderheart, ShadowClan appreciates everything that you have done for us. I believe that you both are now ready to return back to ThunderClan, right?" Alderheart nodded.

"Yes."

"Okay. Y'know, you both can stay for a bit until the rain passes. I wouldn't want you both catching greencough."

"We'll be fine." The dark ginger tom assured him.

"Asuna?" Tigerstar looked over at the she-cat. "Alderheart isn't speaking for you, is he?"

"Oh, no, I'm okay going back to ThunderClan in the rain, really." She assured him before looking over at Puddleshine. "I'm glad we were both able to cure you, Puddleshine."

"I'd be dead if it wasn't for you both. Thank you so much." Asuna and Alderheart left the den, rain beginning to coat their fur. As they were walking, they saw Shadowkit run out of the nursery.

"Are you both really leaving?" He asked.

"We'd love to stay more, but ThunderClan's waiting for us." Asuna told him.

"But I thought you said I could help some more in the medicine den!"

"You can, it just will be you helping Puddleshine. He's an amazing medicine cat." Alderheart meowed. From behind, Dovewing picked up the kit by the scruff.

"Asuna and Alderheart need to go home now, and you need to come back before you get sick." Dovewing told him.

"But what if I have another vision like before?" He complained.

"Dovewing and Tigerstar know how to take care of you." Asuna assured him. "Hopefully we'll see you again soon, Shadowkit." The cream she-cat gave him a lick to the ear. "You too, Dovewing. It was nice seeing you again." The she-cat placed her kit down and nudged him towards the nursery with her tail.

"It was nice seeing you both, too." She said with a smile. "Can you tell my parents and Ivypool that I said hi? I know they must still be hurt from the choice I made."

"Of course, Dovewing. It's not a problem at all." The two she-cats shared a quick nuzzle with each other before Asuna and Alderheart left ShadowClan's camp.

On their way back home, Alderheart had decided to see what SkyClan's decision was, Asuna agreeing with him. It wouldn't be difficult to access their camp, especially since they were medicine cats. They took a detour from their main path back home and headed towards SkyClan's camp. When they arrived at the camp, they tasted the air. The SkyClan scent was faint, possibly due to the rain, but the camp was also empty as well.

"They…actually left." Asuna mewed in disbelief. "We've failed, Alderheart…and so have Kirito and the others…"

"No, we might still be able to bring them back. There has to be some way. We can't let the Clans fall!" He assured her. An idea popped into the tom's mind and he looked around camp.

"What are you looking for?" She wondered, the tom intently searching.

"Violetshine said that she saw Juniperclaw tampering with the fresh-kill pile. If he did, there has to be proof." The two searched for any scent of fresh-kill they could find. The faint scent of mouse touched their noses and they followed it until it was at its strongest. The dried blood coating the floor below told them that this was the spot they were looking for. A familiar scent touched Asuna's nose. _ShadowClan? It's not strong…but it's close by._

"Alderheart, follow me." The cream she-cat told him as she followed the scent towards the camp wall.

"It's ShadowClan. The seeds have to be here somewhere." They looked around until finally, Alderheart looked below the tangled bramble. There, were the deathberry seeds, the scent of ShadowClan still prevalent on them despite the downpour.

"I don't believe it." The she-cat looked at them in astonishment. "Tigerstar would never plot something like this, I know it!"

"Right, I don't think so, either…but would Juniperclaw?" Alderheart asked. "Maybe it wasn't just him, either. The whole patrol may have thought about the plan." Asuna didn't want to believe it. It was possible that some of the warriors' disdain for SkyClan would cause this, but would they really resort to such a draconian idea?

"We need to get back and tell Bramblestar right away."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

"Alderheart! Asuna!" When they return to camp, Sparkpelt was the first to greet the two, a joyful smile on her face. She brushed her muzzle against their cheeks, letting out a purr. "Are you both finally back for good?" Asuna nodded. "That's great!"

"Hey you two!" Kirito ran out of the warriors' den. "It's great to see you're both back."

"It's nice to see you too, Kirito." Alderheart told him before his gaze grew solemn. "SkyClan left their camp."

"What?" The tom looked at them both in disbelief.

"Why do you sound so surprised, Kirito? Isn't that what Leafstar said would happen?" Sparkpelt stated.

"Are you not worried at all, Sparkpelt? Don't you remember the prophecy that StarClan gave us?" Asuna asked her.

"I'm sure we'll all be okay."

"This isn't good…" Kirito muttered. "I really hope you're right, Sparkpelt."

"Alderheart! Asuna!" They turned towards the medicine den and saw that it was Jayfeather.

"We'll be there soon, Jayfeather! We need to speak with Bramblestar!" She told him against the rain.

"Asuna!" From the nursery, Swiftkit ran outside, her paws splashing in the rain. "How was ShadowClan? I bet it looked super cool!"

"I can tell you about it later. Right now, Alderheart and I are a bit busy." She told the kit.

"Swiftkit, what did your father and I tell you about running off? You'll get sick if you don't get back here!" Ivypool called out from the nursery.

"But what about Kirito and Sparkpelt? They're out too!"

"Swiftkit, listen to your mother." Lelouch told her.

"Yes, dad." The kit made her way back to the nursery, Kirito letting out a smile.

"You know she left camp all by herself while you both were gone."

"Really? I can't imagine how worried Lelouch and Ivypool were." Asuna meowed.

"Nightheart told me that she left a path behind so that she could find her way back home." The tom explained.

"That's amazing! I know for a fact wouldn't have thought about that if I was a kit." Alderheart stated. The tom's expression suddenly changed. Hearing such an exciting story brought some light to the dark situation the Clans were now facing, but it wasn't enough to push away the worry in his mind. "We'll see you both later. We need to speak with Bramblestar." The two made their way up Highledge and entered the leader's den, shaking their pelts off gently when they entered.

"Alderheart!" Squirrelflight walked over and greeted her son with a lick to the cheek. "It's great to see you're back. Both of you."

"Yes. We're both glad to have you both finally back home." Bramblestar added.

"There's something I need to tell you both." Alderheart stated. "Asuna and I found SkyClan's camp empty. They're gone." The leader and deputy both looked at each other. "You both don't seem surprised."

"Leafstar was very clear that she wanted to leave the lake." His mother told him. "When she said she'd wait, she was just being nice for the sake of it."

"But don't you both care?"

"Of course we do. I wish it didn't come to this…but not all of the Clans were willing to cooperate." Bramblestar meowed. "I tried to keep them around the lake, and so did WindClan." His amber gaze looked over at Asuna. "However, I'm unsure what this means for you and the others, Asuna. I know you were all tasked to try and keep the five Clans together…but even Leafstar declined their help."

"Do you think this means that she and the others won't be able to return home?" Squirrelflight wondered.

"I hope not. We all appreciate everything you've done for the Clans, but you need to be able to go back to your own worlds." The leader stated. "For now, we must hope StarClan can do whatever they can to protect us."

"Why would they even bother if we don't listen to them in the first place?" Alderheart questioned, his mother placing her tail on his shoulder.

"We listen to them, Alderheart, but there's nothing we can do now to bring SkyClan back."

"We could tell the other Clans about ShadowClan poisoning their prey." Asuna meowed. Bramblestar and Squirrelflight looked over at her. "Before we came back, we wanted to see what SkyClan's decision was. When we found the camp empty, Alderheart suggested that we looked around for any evidence of deathberry seeds in the camp."

"And?" Bramblestar looked at the two intently.

"We found a pile near where the fresh-kill pile was near the camp walls." Alderheart answered. "ShadowClan's scent was all over them." The two looked at them in shock. "We have to do something!"

"What else can we do? SkyClan's left, and Sparrowpelt's still alive. Bringing this news to the other Clans won't bring them back."

"It'll only cause more trouble and the Clans will be even more divided than they are now." Squirrelflight added.

"We must stand together now more than ever." The leader told them.

"But the vision showed that when one Clans falls, so will the others!"

"I know what it said!" Bramblestar spat, his gaze growing soft. "We've tried our best to fulfill their prophecy. All we can do now is come together with the remaining Clans." Asuna placed her tail on Alderheart.

"We can only hope that somehow SkyClan comes back. There was nothing me, you, or the others could do to make them stay." She meowed. "Let's get some sleep. We have to hope for the best." She bowed her head to the leader and deputy before leaving the den, the younger medicine cat following behind.

"Asuna, wait up!" He called out, the she-cat turning around. "You haven't given up…have you?"

"What else is there we _can_ do, Alderheart? For now, we just have to hope that some opportunity arises that can help bring SkyClan back." She meowed. "I'll be in the warriors' den if you need me." _How can any of us help bring SkyClan back? They've left already despite the storm outside. Is…Is it possible that we've failed our mission to unite the five Clans?_

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

Noctis walked alongside Flypaw and Twigbranch through the rain. Even though the rain still persisted for days, the Clan still needed to be fed. They had gone out with Finleap and Snappaw, but the two decided to practice combat skills. As days passed since SkyClan left, Finleap had separated himself from the Clan. The distraught he was feeling of his kin leaving the lake was hurting him inside.

"We should talk with Finleap when we get back to camp. Anything to try and keep his mind off of SkyClan leaving." Noctis suggested as the two followed behind the apprentice.

"Do you think I haven't tried that? I've been worried about him." The she-cat replied. "I can't help but think I'd cause more trouble. You know how much he wants to have kits, but I'm not ready yet. He's been frustrated with me ever since."

"Just keep trying. He needs someone to be with him right now." Noctis let out a sigh. "I'm starting to sound like Asuna, aren't I?" The she-cat smiled.

"A bit, but I always appreciate your advice, Noct." Twigbranch meowed. The two watched as Flypaw got into a hunter's crouch, slowly watching her prey. In one quick leap, she grabbed a mouse between her paws and finished it off with a quick bite. "Great catch, Flypaw."

"Yeah. Y'know, you might be an even better hunter than Twigbranch." Noctis meowed, Twigbranch giving him a small shove.

"Really?" The apprentice asked in awe.

"Well, I don't—." Twigbranch's nose twitched. There was a familiar scent nearby. Noctis did the same, looking over at the she-cat when he realized what it was.

"Do you both smell something? Is it good?" Flypaw wondered.

"Bury your mouse here for now. We're going to a different spot to hunt." Twigbranch meowed, taking the lead.

"Noct, what is it?"

"It's not prey…but we need to go check it out." The tom told her. _It's definitely Tree. Did he not go with Violetshine and SkyClan?_ They made their way outside of Clan territory, the land beginning to slope upwards with the mountains in the distance. The pines and oak trees mingled with each other, brambles growing all around. Blood mixed in with Tree's scent, the group slowing down as they looked around. "I'll take the lead from here, Twigbranch." The tom meowed. As they continued walking, Violetshine's scent now was present, although faint. Noctis looked around. He was close. "Tree? Hey, you out here?" He called out.

"Tree? You mean the cat with SkyClan?" Flypaw asked, sniffing around.

"Be careful, Flypaw. Can't you smell the blood nearby?" Her mentor warned.

"It's just fresh-kill." From the nearby holly bush, Tree poked his head out. "What are you all doing out here?"

"We were confused when we caught your scent." Twigbranch meowed. "Is Violetshine with you?" She asked, the tom shaking his head.

"She left with SkyClan." Twigbranch's ears fell flat. "You three should get out of the rain. Come in." He retreated into the bush, leading the three inside. Although some rainwater seeped from above, it was better than having no shelter.

"So…you didn't go with SkyClan because…"

"I wanted to stay beside the lake." Tree told the tom.

"You didn't want to go with Violetshine?" Twigbranch asked. "Don't you love her?"

"I do…but I don't feel like I belong in SkyClan. Besides, a dead cat told me to try and beg Leafstar to stay, but it didn't work." He stated. "The lake has to be important. I asked Violetshine to stay, but she wanted to go with SkyClan instead, which I get." He sighed. "Still…I miss her."

"Um…do you think I can have some of your rabbit?" Flypaw asked, sniffing the piece of prey inside of the den.

"Go right ahead. There's so much prey out here anyway."

"So, guess you're back to your old life, huh?" Noctis asked.

"Yeah. I don't really have another life to go to."

"You can still be the Clan mediator." Twigbranch suggested, causing Tree to scoff.

"The Clans don't listen to me. They didn't even listen to Noctis over here and the others when they tried. It was a waste of my time." He shook his head. "I'm trying to back to my old life, but I enjoyed having other cats with me rather than being alone all the time."

"The rain doesn't help either, huh?" The she-cat meowed.

"Definitely not…but I've realized that it's been like this the moment Leafstar decided to leave." He looked over at Noctis. "You had the vision too, right Noct? Is the weather similar?"

"It's picking up to the point where it's possible." The black tom replied. "You don't think the vision was talking about a literal storm, do you? I was thinking it was just some sort of symbolism."

"It's starting to seem like a literal thing."

"So…the weather will go back to normal if SkyClan comes back?" Noctis asked. "Can't say I'd be surprised if it does. I'm in a world with talking cats, and weather that can be manipulated by some prophecy wouldn't be a long shot."

"Maybe Leafstar will see how bad the weather is and come back." Flypaw said after taking another bite of the rabbit.

"That could be true…and maybe Mistystar and Tigerstar will realize they were wrong and will cooperate to keep SkyClan around the lake!" Twigbranch realized.

"I don't know if bad weather will be enough to convince them." Tree meowed.

"Then…how about we ask other cats to try and convince the leaders?" Twigbranch suggested. "It's obvious that some cats want SkyClan to stay around the lake, we just need to figure out who does."

"I know some of the apprentices in WindClan and RiverClan do, and even some of the SkyClan apprentices, too." Flypaw told them.

"So if we can just get the other cats to raise their voices to their leaders about keeping SkyClan beside the lake, then they might change their minds!" Joy filled Twigbranch's voice. Anything to get Violetshine and Hawkwing close to her.

"But it won't work if we can't get Leafstar and SkyClan back here." The golden tom told them.

"Easy: We go and bring her and SkyClan back with cats who want them beside the lake." Noctis stated. "It'll be just like you said, Twigbranch, with the added task of tracking down SkyClan. I'm sure we'll find more than enough help in ThunderClan. Just need to get warriors from the other Clans now." Twigbranch purred in joy.

"This is great! I just need to do one more thing…well, we do, Noct."

"We do?" The tom looked at her in confusion.

"Yup. We need to tell Bramblestar about our plan and get his permission. I want to do this the right way." The older tom chuckled.

"Whoa, this the same Twigbranch I first met when I got here?" The she-cat smiled. "We'll get SkyClan back here, Twigbranch, even if he doesn't agree to it." _Bramblestar seemed keen on keeping SkyClan around, so I'm sure we'll get his consent. Only thing is tracking down SkyClan in this weather. Hopefully it's actually stopped them from getting too far._

Noctis watched Swiftkit and Foxkit playing around near a huge puddle that formed inside of camp. The rain hadn't gotten better ever since he and Twigbranch returned to camp after seeing Tree.

"Hey, I'm a RiverClan cat!" The she-kit meowed, splashing around camp.

"You'll have to try and swim like me then, Swiftkit!" Her brother responded as the tom wadded into the puddle.

"Okay you two, that's enough. Get in here." Lelouch called out to them, although they were too busy having fun to listen to him. He sighed and ran out into the rain, picking up Swiftkit by the scruff. Noctis did the same, picking up Foxkit and bringing him into the nursery. Once the kits were inside, they shook off their fur quickly. "Thanks, Noctis."

"No prob. Don't want them getting sick, after all." He meowed. "So, think you can take care of them without Ivypool around?"

"I'd hope so. I did tell her I'd take over watching them whenever she wanted to take on some warrior tasks." Lelouch replied. "It helps knowing that you and the others like watching over them, too."

"Well yeah, they're cute. It's more of a treat for me than anything."

"I'm glad you feel that way." Lelouch's gaze suddenly grew serious. "Did you and Twigbranch tell Bramblestar yet about your plan to bring back SkyClan?" Noctis shook his head.

"I think we'll head out though even without his permission. We're supposed to keep the five Clans beside the lake anyway."

"Right. Just try to be safe out there." The tom chuckled.

"Do you know who you're talking to? You have nothing to worry about." He looked down at the two kits. "I'll see you both later."

"Bye, Noctis." The small tom meowed as Noctis walked back into the rain. He saw Twigbranch and Alderheart, along with Asuna, speaking to Bramblestar, along with the patrol that went to check on RiverClan.

"See? We have to bring SkyClan back!" Twigbranch told the leader, Bramblestar ignoring her and turning towards the patrol.

"How is RiverClan doing?"

"Their camp is flooded out right now. They're staying with WindClan." Ivypool told him.

"Yeah. If it helps, Mistystar agrees that they should've listened to StarClan." Lionblaze added.

"Harestar agreed as well." Bumblestripe added. "They think that to keep the Clans safe, we need SkyClan."

"So are they willing to give up land to keep them around the lake?" Cherryfall shook her head.

"They said they would be willing to negotiate, but I'm sure the main thing that matters is that they're convinced that we need SkyClan with us."

"So this is the perfect opportunity for us then!" Twigbranch exclaimed. "Noct and I can take some cats from every Clan and look for SkyClan to persuade them to come back!"

"It wouldn't hurt to try…but we still need to deal with Tigerstar." Alderheart meowed.

"If he disagrees, it'll be StarClan judging him. We all see how much we need SkyClan around the lake." He looked over at Twigbranch and Noctis. "You both take as many cats as you need with you and head out to look for SkyClan. Lionblaze, you go out and help them recruit cats from the other Clans." The tom nodded and headed out with the two. Ivypool made her way back to the nursery, while Cherryfall and Bumblestripe found shelter in the warriors den.

"Bramblestar…we need to talk to you." Alderheart meowed.

"Is something wrong?" He wondered, his son nodding.

"Let's talk over there." Alderheart led the leader over to the Highledge, the three now protected by the jutting cliff above them. "It's about ShadowClan. They need our help."

"What happened?"

"Alderheart went over to ShadowClan to check on Puddleshine earlier today. He said that Shadowkit saw Juniperclaw dig up the deathberries we hid." Asuna told him. "Pair that with what we found in SkyClan and what Violetshine said and there's no doubt Juniperclaw poisoned their prey."

"Are you both really sure about this? It's a heavy accusation." He told them.

"As sure as I'll ever be." Alderheart meowed with confidence. "Juniperclaw said that every cat is safe on ShadowClan territory just so long as they're welcome. They wanted SkyClan driven out, and he found a way to do so without fighting." Bramblestar growled.

"I'd never think a warrior would do such a thing. ShadowClan might be in more danger than we thought."

"Yes, but you can help them!"

"Me? What can I do? This is Tigerstar's issue to resolve." His father responded. "All he'll do is accuse me and deny the fact."

"Maybe I can try speaking with him again." Asuna offered. "I don't know what he'll say, but if it'll save ShadowClan, I have to try."

"Right. We need to convince him. We saw what the rogues did to them, and Juniperclaw is showing that he still holds that mentality. If he becomes leader somehow…we might lose ShadowClan. They'll stop being a Clan entirely." Bramblestar nodded his head.

"We can't let that happen. I have to try and convince him as well. Whenever you both are ready, I'll join you in speaking with Tigerstar. We must do this to keep the five Clans around the lake."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Thank StarClan you're with us, Kirito. Your tracking skill is definitely a blessing from StarClan." Willowshine told the tom as he was leading to group.

"Yeah, it's pretty handy in this world. Definitely helps with hunting, too." Noctis and Twigbranch had recruited Willowshine, Icewing, and Lizardtail from RiverClan, and Nightcloud, Hootwhisker, and Gorsetail from WindClan. Kirito, Finleap, Cherryfall, and Flypaw joined them as well. The strong wind that accompanied the heavy rain blew through their fur. "Man, this is just like the storm in the vision. How's everyone holding up back there?"

"We're alright, Kirito. Just keep on tracking SkyClan as best as you can." Twigbranch told the tom. She glanced over at Tree. "I bet you're so excited to see Violetshine again."

"More than anything. I just hope that she's still okay." Rain began to hit the patrol more often as they broke through the forest and now crossed through the wetland, their paws becoming heavy as they sunk into the ground. "Kirito, do you see that Thunderpath? We're heading over there, right?"

"Yeah, that's what I'm seeing." The tom responded, his voice being slightly drowned out by the intense weather.

"There should be a stream nearby that we need to cross." The yellow tom stated.

"Yeah, I can hear it from here." Noctis meowed. Kirito followed the sound of the stream and led the group towards it. When they reached it, they saw just how strong the stream had become due to the storm.

"It's a torrent. Even RiverClan cats wouldn't be able to cross." Willowshine stated.

"Is there another way we can cross?" Nightcloud asked Tree, the tom shaking his head.

"If we go upstream or downstream, there's going to be a problem."

"Hey!" Noctis called out to the group. The tom stood next to an alder tree, its trunk exposed. "If we break this we'll create a bridge we can cross." Noctis raised a paw up and swiped when he saw a transparent sword in front of him. He stopped when a transparent greatsword was now there instead, the blade disappearing, a light now infused in his paws. "I'll need some help still." The others joined Noctis on one side of the tree. "Alright, one, two, three!" The cats all put their full weight towards the tree and watched as it snapped, landing on the opposite side of the stream. Noctis let out a breath and swapped back to his normal sword.

"Awesome! Alright, let's go everyone."

The patrol continued following SkyClan's path, the sky darkening once night hit. They were all exhausted, their paws aching. Tree had told them about a cave nearby that would make good shelter for them to rest, the tom now taking the lead.

"It should be just through here." They quickened their pace, the safe haven sounding like just what they all needed. When they finally reached the cave, they rushed inside, relieved to finally find some shelter from the rain.

"Okay everyone, we should be fine staying here tonight. I think some of us should hunt, while the rest goes out and creates nests for us." Kirito looked over at Twigbranch. "That's okay, right?"

"Oh! Yes! That's perfect." She meowed. _I guess I forget that I'm technically leading this group._ She looked over at Flypaw. "You rest, and I'll go hunt with the others." The apprentice shook her head.

"If you're hunting, then I am, too." Twigbranch smiled, and nodded her head.

"Okay, follow me. Nightcloud, Gorsetail, can you go and fetch some bedding?" She asked, the two cats nodded. "Great. Everyone else, let's go hunt." The rest of the cats left the den, Twigbranch noticing Noctis follow the two she-cats. "Oh, did you not want to hunt?" The tom turned around.

"I could if you want me to, but I make a pretty mean nest." Twigbranch smiled and looked over at Flypaw. "Go help Finleap, I'll help over here." The apprentice nodded and left. She walked over to the tom's side and they followed the two she-cats. They found a patch of brambles and tore away as much as they could to bring to the cave. When they returned, the dropped the supplies, Noctis and Twigbranch creating a huge nest for them all to share while the two WindClan cats brought them ferns to add. "Just like old times, huh?"

"Yeah. It feels like such a long time ago. We had so much fun doing something so boring to most other cats."

"You're welcome for giving you something to look at." A blush formed on the she-cat's face, causing Noctis to laugh. "Same old Twigpaw."

"Hey! I earned my warrior name, you—." She noticed the tom suddenly stop working. "Noct?" She watched the tom shake himself back into reality.

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay?"

"Never better. Just…thinking about something." _I wonder what. Nothing usually ever bothers Noct like that._

After a few more minutes, the four cats had finished creating the nest that they'd use for the night. They now waited for the hunting party to return. The scent of rabbit touched Noctis' nose and they watched as Tree had returned, a fat rabbit in his jaws. He dropped it down and looked over at Twigbranch.

"Would you like to share?" She nodded and walked over, Noctis following behind. "Did you want some too, Noct?" The black tom shook his head.

"You both eat. I'll wait for the others." He assured them. The three had talked amongst each other for a while until Flypaw returned from hunting, Finleap behind her.

"Look! I caught it on my first try!" She meowed in joy as she dropped her shrew in front of her mentor.

"That's great, Flypaw!" She saw Finleap walking over, a mangled sparrow in his jaws. He dropped it and looked over at the rabbit between Twigbranch and Tree.

"I was wondering if you wanted to share this…but it seems like you're already taken care of."

"I didn't know you were bringing me prey, Finleap. Tree came over and offered, and I was hungry." She apologized. "You can share with Noct."

"It's fine. You can have it, Finleap." The tom let out a growl and looked over at the rabbit once more.

"I guess it helps knowing where the best prey lives. It's way easier to hunt if you're familiar with the territory."

"I can catch rabbits anywhere." The yellow tom retorted.

"Right. I'm guessing you used to catch rabbits to impress Violetshine? I'm guessing you forgot about her, too. Is that why you're trying to impress Twigbranch?"

"Whoa, Finleap, calm down." Noctis urged.

"Shut up! All you need to do is exist and Twigbranch falls for you!" He snapped.

"Maybe if you didn't ignore her for the whole journey she'd notice you. Plus, bringing _that_ definitely isn't going to work." Tree retorted.

"Loner." Finleap spat before leaving the group. Twigbranch looked at him, concern in her gaze.

"Probably be best if you go talk to him." Noctis suggested. The she-cat got up and chased after him.

"Are they going to be okay?" Flypaw wondered.

"I hope so. The last thing we need now is more trouble."

The rest of the hunting patrol had returned, every cat now having a piece of prey to eat. Noctis bit into the flesh of a mouse and stripped a piece off. He looked over at the rabbit Tree and Twigbranch had been sharing. After Twigbranch went to speak with Finleap, Tree had gotten up and looked out into the forest. Some of the cats said that he was talking to himself. _He's probably talking to a dead warrior._ The tom realized.

"Hey!" From the forest, Finleap ran towards the cave, Twigbranch following behind him. "We met a cat who said they saw SkyClan pass by here yesterday! We're getting close!"

"Isn't knowing that Kirito can track SkyClan enough to tell us that they're okay?" Willowshine asked. "Then again, I guess it's good knowing a cat around here actually saw them."

"Yeah. We'll bring SkyClan back, Finleap, no doubt about it." Kirito assured him. "We'll just get some rest and be good to go tomorrow morning."

"There's no time." Twigbranch stated. "Tree said that he was talking to my mother. She says that SkyClan is in danger. We need to go, now!"

Kirito raced past countless trees, following the path SkyClan had laid out for him via his tracking skill. The others behind tried their best to keep up with him.

"Kirito, slow down!" Lizardtail called from behind.

"We can't if SkyClan needs our help right now!" The tom responded. They weren't sure why time of day it was anymore, the dark stormclouds above blocking the sky above them. Suddenly, the young black tom came to a halt and looked around.

"What's wrong?" Twigbranch asked.

"They're close, like, really close. I can see them through the trees." He stated. "They're this way!" Kirito led them up towards a steep slope and when they reached the top they saw that across from them was the SkyClan cats. They were stranded on a makeshift island created by the flooding waters surrounding the hill they were on. They were perched up in a great elm tree, the water level around them still increasing. "Alright, anyone…hey, Finleap!" Kirito called out as the tom raced down the slope and jumped into the flooding waters.

"Finleap!" Twigbranch called out in worry as she watched. In the water, they could see that there was another cat in there as well. They realized that it was Leafstar. Finleap had been able to grab her by the scruff, but now struggled to pull her towards the shore where the others were.

"C'mon, let's go pull him out of there!" Noctis told them, he and the others running towards the shore to help pull him out. Once they did, Willowshine immediately began looking over Leafstar, the cats all hoping that she was alright. The SkyClan's leader suddenly jerked, the she-cat coughing up muddy water as she tried to regain her breath.

"We're gonna get you all over here!" Kirito assured the SkyClan cats. "But how?" He looked around, his gaze now fixated on the maple tree that was on their side. "Noct, Twigbranch, Hootwhisker, Tree, follow me, I got an idea." Kirito ran over to the tree and began to climb it, the others following.

"So, what are we doing?" Kirito almost lost his grip when he heard Noctis' voice above him, the tom warping up to a nearby branch.

"See that long branch up there? If we bend it, they'll be able to climb across." He explained.

"Y'know, I don't think you get much credit for being smart sometimes." Noctis meowed.

"With Lelouch in camp, when could I ever get the chance to shine?" Kirito said with a laugh before Noctis warped over to the branch. He and the others all climbed over to it and slowly walked along it. "Noct, switch to your greatsword to add more weight." He nodded and once he switched, the others felt the branch instantly bend, almost losing their grip. "Okay, just slowly walk to the end of it, everyone." The branch continued to bend slowly more and more until it was just pawsteps away from one of the branches of the elm tree that the SkyClan cats were stranded in. One by one, the SkyClan cats made their way onto the maple branch, relieved that they were all finally safe.

"I think that's everyone!" Twigbranch purred in joy.

"Yup. That went better than I expected." Noctis meowed, swiping his paw until a transparent sword appeared in front of him. Once it disappeared, the others on the branch braced onto the bark, the tom's sudden change in weight causing it to bounce.

"Geez, does using a greatsword really make you that heavy?" Kirito asked.

"Trust me, I've used it more times in this world than I'd like to. Slow and sluggish, but powerful isn't really my type." The younger black tom let out a chuckle.

"That makes both of us." Kirito looked down at the SkyClan cats. "Well, we've done it, time to head back to the lake."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

 _Alderheart, Bramblestar, and Asuna_ waited at ShadowClan's border for a patrol to escort them to their camp. It had been two days ever since Alderheart told his father of Juniperclaw's poisoning of SkyClan's prey, the ThunderClan leader now ready to try and tell the ShadowClan leader of his warrior's wrongdoing.

"I hope Tigerstar's willing to listen." Asuna meowed. "We can't let Juniperclaw be the one that takes his place as leader."

"Right. I can't imagine what he might do if that time does come." Alderheart replied.

"It's not that simple." His father meowed. "We can try to convince Tigerstar, but the course of action he takes after is up to him to decide." They heard rustling nearby and saw a ShadowClan patrol consisting of Strikestone, Blazepaw, and Snaketooth.

"What are you three doing here?" Snaketooth asked, her fur bristling.

"We need to speak with Tigerstar. Please." The cream she-cat meowed, the two warriors looking at each other for a second before answering.

"Okay." Strikestone nodded his head. "Follow us." The ShadowClan patrol led the ThunderClan cats through their territory, the rain still pouring in vast amounts as it did a few days ago. When they entered camp, Strikestone ran off to fetch Tigerstar, the leader leaving his den and approaching the group.

"Welcome. Is there something wrong in ThunderClan?" He asked them.

"No, we're fine." Bramblestar meowed. "Have you heard of the flood in RiverClan?" The ShadowClan leader nodded.

"We saw it ourselves. They could've came to take refuge with us. We have the territory to spare." Asuna looked over at the medicine den and then over at the leader.

"How's Shadowkit?"

"Better. The visions are still there, but without the seizures. At this point they're just nightmares." The she-cat could feel her body tense. The visions paired with the heavy rain wasn't a good sign. The possibility of Shadowkit's death was more possible than it had ever been now. Dovewing walked out of the nursery to join her mate, greeting the three with a smile.

"Is that all you three came here to talk about?" She wondered.

"Not exactly." Bramblestar's gaze turned serious as he looked at Tigerstar. "Alderheart and Asuna have told me that they saw Juniperclaw taking deathberry seeds from the medicine den, and…" Tigerstar raised his tail to silence him.

"This again?" He looked over at the medicine cats. "SkyClan's gone. There's no need to bring this up anymore."

"Wait." Dovewing touched him with her tail. "Is what they're saying true? Did Juniperclaw actually use deathberries?"

"Asuna and Alderheart are convincing themselves that it's true." The leader meowed.

"Is it?" His mate asked, causing him to hesitate.

"SkyClan may be gone, but Juniperclaw is the next in line for leader if you die, Tigerstar. Would you let ShadowClan be led by such a cat in your place? One that resorts to such cruel tactics?"

"He's right, Tigerstar." Dovewing meowed. "You can't let ShadowClan be like it was when the rogues had taken over."

"I'm not! This is just ThunderClan gossip!" He spat, the she-cat shaking her head.

"Asuna and Alderheart would have no reason to lie about such a thing. They're trying to help us, Tigerstar." Dovewing pleaded. "Please go speak with Juniperclaw. He's not far from here." The leader looked over at Scorchfur.

"Go get Juniperclaw." The warrior nodded and left camp, Tigerstar's amber gaze looking at the ThunderClan cats. "If you're wrong about this, I don't want another ThunderClan cat setting paw in this camp ever again."

A few minutes later, pawsteps were heard splashing through the puddles outside of camp. Scorchfur had returned, Juniperclaw following behind him. As he headed towards the cats, Strikestone joined him.

"Please tell these cats that you didn't use deathberry seeds to harm SkyClan!" He told his littermate. All the tom did was look over at Alderheart.

"You knew where the deathberry seeds were! Shadowkit saw you take them, and Violetshine saw you place them with the prey! Asuna and I ever found the seeds covered with ShadowClan scent!" Alderheart meowed. Tigerstar looked over at the ShadowClan warrior.

"Is it true, Juniperclaw?" The clearing grew silent until the tom let out a breath.

"I prevented ShadowClan from entering countless battles. Grassheart was the only one hurt from all of this." The ShadowClan cats around them looked at the deputy in shock.

"So it's true…" Strikestone looked at his brother in disbelief.

"I did it to protect my Clan!"

"By doing so you almost killed Sparrowpelt!" Tigerstar spat. "We're warriors! We don't murder cats for the sake of getting our way!" Juniperclaw's ears fell flat. "You are no longer deputy of ShadowClan. I don't even know if you're even worth being a warrior for our Clan either." He quickly turned to face Tawnypelt and Scorchfur. "Take him to the warriors' den and keep it guarded while I think of the proper punishment." The cats watched the former deputy walk into the den, sulking. Tigerstar faced the ThunderClan cats. "I guess I owe you three an apology."

"It's not your fault." Asuna assured him.

"Right. What you did was a noble gesture. Showing that those loyal to ShadowClan and those who betrayed them in the past could still coexist is very understandable."

"Right, but I didn't expect something like this to come from it." Dovewing pressed closer to him.

"You couldn't have known."

"Even so, it caused SkyClan to leave. I was too focused on rebuilding ShadowClan that I neglected a message from our ancestors." He looked up at the dark sky above. "The storm they foresaw is here. I just hope we'll all be okay."

"We should be. Twigbranch set up a patrol to try and bring SkyClan back." The cream she-cat told him.

"Let's hope they can reach them in time." Dovewing meowed. She heard meowing from the nursery and turned around to see Pouncekit.

"Dovewing, we're hungry! Can we have something to eat?" The she-cat let out a smile before walking over to the fresh-kill pile.

"Will you both share a shrew with Shadowkit?" She asked the kit.

"Shadowkit's not here." Dovewing, Tigerstar, Asuna, and Alderheart looked over at the nursery.

"What?" Tigerstar raced inside, followed by the others. "Where is he? He has to be around here!"

"He said he was playing some sort of game." Lightkit told her father. "He said he was going to save us and ran off." Immediately, Asuna raced out of the den.

"Asuna!" Bramblestar called out.

"I'm going to get help!" She quickly told the leader before leaving the camp and heading back to ThunderClan. _Please, Shadowkit, please be safe._

Nightheart rested down in the warriors' den with Suguha and Lucina, the three keeping themselves out of the rain.

"I've never seen it rain this much before in my life." Suguha told them. "I hope it ends soon."

"I think it should once Twigbranch and the others return with SkyClan." Nightheart assured them. The she-cat's ears twitched when she heard the fast sound of pawsteps outside the camp. She looked out of the den and saw that it was Asuna. Curious, she walked over to her, the she-cat panting for her breath. "Asuna, what's wrong?"

"It's Shadowkit! He's missing! I think his vision might come true!"

"What?"

"Suguha, Lucina, we need to go, now!" Asuna called to the she-cats, the two leaving the den.

"Wait, what's going on?" Squirrelflight approached the group.

"Shadowkit's in trouble!" From the nursery, Ivypool walked over to them.

"I'll go. If one of my sister's kits are in danger, I need to help."

"I'll help too." Molewhisker volunteered.

"That should be enough cats. We can't waste any more time!" Asuna ran out of the camp, the others following behind her.

"Is Shadowkit really in trouble, Asuna?" Ivypool asked.

"I think so. He's been having visions of him drowning. With the weather outside, I think his vision could come true if we don't find him." The ThunderClan patrol's paws splashed through the countless puddles scattered throughout the forest, the sky growing darker as time passed. They had passed by Tawnypelt, but had to time to talk, the she-cat also in a rush. As they passed through ShadowClan territory, Lucina's nose twitched.

"I can catch his scent. He's towards RiverClan territory." She told the group.

"Lead the way." Asuna meowed, catching her breath. "Don't worry about me. I'll be behind you." The others nodded and ran off towards RiverClan. Once they were finally out of the pine forests of ShadowClan, they saw just how flooded the lake had gotten.

"I've never seen the lake like this before." Nightheart meowed in disbelief. She looked over and noticed Suguha switch to Leafa, the she-cat's younger appeared now replaced with that of an older pale ginger cat.

"If Shadowkit's drowning like Asuna said his vision showed, I might be able to protect him." Suguha meowed. "Lucina, can you still trace his scent?"

"Yes, I'm sure that we're on the right track. Is everyone ready?" They nodded, Lucina looking behind them. "Should we wait for Asuna?"

"With a nickname like 'The Flash'? We don't have to worry." Molewhisker assured her. The blue-gray she cat nodded and the group continued towards RiverClan's camp, the rain seeming to grow heavier with every pawstep that they took. As they got closer, they now began calling out for the kit as they ran.

"Shadowkit! Shadowkit, where are you?" Ivypool called out against the rain.

"Help!" The smell of SkyClan touched their noses, the group quickening their pace as they raced towards RiverClan's now flooded camp. When they reached the river that bordered their camp, they saw some of the SkyClan cats on one side, the rest, including some of the patrol sent to find them, on the same side they were on. In the stream, they saw Violetshine, Lizardtail, and Hootwhisker, the three holding on for dear life against the roaring current that they were in. In the stream, Nightheart looked and saw a dark body flailing in the water.

"Shadowkit!" Without hesitation, Nightheart leaped into the stream, trying her best to fight the current and swim towards the kit.

"Nightheart!" Ivypool called out as she ran to the edge of the stream with the others. "Oh StarClan, please protect her!" Next to her, Suguha began to cast her Butterfly Shield spell. In a few seconds, a shield surrounded the violet-eyed she-cat.

"I don't know how long it'll last, Nightheart! Please be careful!" She called out.

"Noctis, is there anything you can do?" Lucina asked.

"I can't warp while I'm carrying them." Noctis told her. "We were brought here to help the Clans, right? Might as well try our best." Noctis jumped into the stream ahead of Violetshine, trying his best to help her, grabbing onto the same root she was. "You doing okay?"

"I…I don't know. I'm worried, Noct."

"Don't. We're getting you out of here, for both you and your kits." He assured her. "Let go and climb on my shoulders."

"But what about you?"

"I'll be fine! Just do it before another wave comes!" He told her, his head briefly going underwater. He coughed out the water, his intense blue gaze looking at her. "Violetshine, go! I'll warp out as soon as you get out!" The she-cat nodded and let go of the root, immediately gripping the tom's shoulder. He winced as she dug her claws into her fur and climbed up over him. She pulled closer to the shore, the current calmer around where she was. When she was only a muzzle-length away from land, Tree pulled her onto the shore.

"Hey, some of you go save Hootwhisker and Lizardtail!" Noctis called to the cats on the shore.

"What about you?" Twigbranch asked, worry in her meow.

"I'll—." A huge wave bashed into Noctis, the tom losing his grip on the root.

"Noct!" Suguha chanted her Butterfly Shield spell again, protecting the tom. He flailed in the water, trying to warp out. _What the hell? It's not working!_ He found another root jutting more downstream and grabbed onto it.

"We'll get you out, Noct. Just wait a bit!" Kirito assured him, looking around. Nearby, he saw Lucina enter the river to save the other two cats. "Sugu, Lucina needs a shield!"

"Okay!" Suguha casted her shield spell once more, protecting Lucina. She watched as Nightheart still struggled to swim against the water, the she-cat carrying the kit by the scruff. "Nightheart, I don't know how much longer that shield will last!" The violet-eyed she-cat looked around, trying to figure out how to bring Shadowkit back to shore. She saw the root that Noctis and Violetshine were on before and let the current carry her downstream as she swam towards it. Now gripping the root with her claws, she placed Shadowkit on it.

"Can someone get him?" She called to the cats. Molewhisker ran over and picked up the kit by the scruff, bringing him to shore. He looked back at Nightheart and saw that the shield around her was now gone. He watched as her head went underwater briefly, spitting out any water that had gotten into her mouth.

"I'll get you out of there!" He told her, looking around, trying to find the best way for him to save her.

"No, don't!" She retorted. "I'm going to help Noctis!"

"If you do you'll drown like he almost did!" Molewhisker retorted. "Nightheart…I love you. Let me do this, please!"

"How do you think I feel? I can't see you die trying to save me, Molewhisker!" She confessed. "I need to do this." Nightheart let go of the root and let the current carry her over to where Noctis was. She grabbed onto it and was now face –to-face with the tom. "Noctis, I want you to do the same thing you made Violetshine do."

"What? That's not happening! Who's gonna get you out of here?"

"I'll find a way. If you die, Luna might not be able to see you again."

"Yeah, and if you die, your family's going to miss you!"

"I know!" She spat. "You were brought into this world to help the Clans. You shouldn't die here by helping us!" Nightheart pleaded. "Please, Noctis." The tom shook his head.

"I don't want to do this, Nightheart. Are you sure?" She nodded. The tom let go of the root and gripped onto the she-cat's shoulder. Once his body was out of the water, he watched as a transparent sword appeared in front of him. _I guess I can't use it if my body's mostly below water._ He gave the she-cat one final glance before warping back to shore, shaking the water out of his coat. Nightheart saw the root beginning to pull away from the shore, the current growing stronger. _Mother…father…take care of Foxkit and Swiftkit, please._ The root gave way, sending Nightheart down the stream.

"Nightheart, no!" Ivypool wailed, fear in her voice. The she-cat couldn't hear the panicked frenzy of her friends, the water completely submerging her body. She tried to stay above the water, but she didn't have the strength to do so.

"Nightheart!" Kirito called out, ready to jump into the stream.

"Kazuto, wait!" Suguha stopped the tom. She had noticed Molewhisker dive into the stream, the current carrying him towards the she-cat.

 _I won't let her die._ The brown and cream tom told himself as he got closer to her. "Nightheart, try swimming towards me!" He meowed once he saw the she-cat's body remain afloat. "Nightheart!" He called again, but there was no response. He swam over to her and grabbed her by the scruff. The two were now out of the stream and in the flooded lake. He could see the shore, but he was heavily fatigued pulling Nightheart with him.

"C'mon, swim towards me!" Noctis called out, leaping into the lake and swimming towards the two. _I don't think I can make it to him._ Suddenly, he felt a body bump into him. He looked back and saw that it was Juniperclaw, his head bobbing in the water.

"Go! You both don't deserve to die here!" The tom had pushed them both to the best of his ability as he struggled to stay afloat. The momentum was enough for Molewhisker to place a paw on Noctis' shoulder and grab him.

"I switched over to my daggers, so we should be able to stay above water." Noctis told the tom as they both began to swim together towards the shore. The rest of the cats all were waiting on the shore as they swam back. Once they touched ground, Noctis helped Molewhisker carry Nightheart's body, Ivypool running over to them.

"Asuna!" She called for the she-cat. She made her way over towards where Nightheart's body was, her eyes glowing. She let out a gasp, her hazel eyes now glistening. "No…Asuna, please…"

"I'm…I'm so sorry, Ivypool."

"No, she has to still be alive!" Suguha meowed, looking down at Nightheart. "Nightheart, wake up, please!" Her tears fell onto the she-cat drenched black coat.

"There has to be something we can do!" Lucina looked over at Asuna, who shook her head. "Oh, Nightheart…" She wiped her eyes with a paw. "I should've been the one to save Shadowkit, not you..."

"Is she…really dead?" Molewhisker looked down at the she-cat's lifeless body, hitting the ground with a paw. "I should've saved her! I would've taken her place!"

"If I knew I wouldn't be able to warp in water…she might still be alive." Noctis growled in frustration. "She risked her life to save me. I shouldn't have let her…" Twigbranch pressed close to him, wiping her eyes into his coat.

"She always put others' lives in front of her own. I know exactly how you both feel." Kirito told the two toms, tears falling from his eyes. "This isn't fair…" Above, the dark clouds began to fade, the rain slowly subsiding.

"We should get back to camp and sit vigil for her with everyone else." Asuna meowed.

"We'll carry her." Noctis meowed, looking over at Molewhisker. "You okay to do that?"

"Y-Yeah." They walked over to Nightheart's body, the others stepping away from her. As they were about to pick her up, they both saw the she-cat's eyes slowly struggle to open. "She's alive!" Ivypool and the others ran over to Nightheart's side, Ivypool letting out a breath of relief when she saw her daughter's violet eyes open again.

"Nightheart!" She pressed close to her daughter. "Thank StarClan you're okay!"

"I…I'm not dreaming, right?" She asked. "I thought I died." Suguha ran over to her and pressed her head close to hers. "Suguha…"

"I'm…so happy that you're okay, Nightheart." Kirito gave her mate a shove.

"You told us she died!"

"Because that's what the scan of her body told me!" Asuna retorted. "I'm…glad it was wrong." She wiped her hazel eyes.

"No, I don't think it was, Asuna." Nightheart told her, Molewhisker helping her get up. She looked over at the tom, a blush on her face.

"He jumped in to help you, y'know." Suguha told her.

"O-Oh...Thank you, Molewhisker."

"I think he deserves more than that, Nightheart." Lucina teased.

"N-No, it's okay, really, N—." The she-cat pressed her head under the tom's chin, letting out a soft purr. "D-Did you really mean what you said, Nightheart?" She looked up at the tom.

"I'd never lie about something like that, Molewhisker. I really do love you." She meowed. "Were you going to ask me to be your mate the other day when we were looking for Swiftkit?" A blush formed on his face, the tom nodding.

"I was glad Lelouch called for us. I don't think I could've done it."

"I knew it! It was the moment you protected him when we were fighting the rogues!" Suguha meowed, causing the two to blush.

"I think someone here's a bit jealous." Kirito looked over at Noctis, a blush on his face.

"W-What? No I'm not!" He looked over at Nightheart. "Thanks for saving me, Nightheart." The violet-eyed she-cat let out a smile.

"You really shouldn't be the one making jokes like that. You're definitely jealous of Molewhisker." Asuna told her boyfriend.

"Okay, I know where this goes after I make a joke. Let's get back to camp already."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

When the group of ThunderClan cats made it back to camp, they were greeted by Squirrelflight, the deputy letting out a sigh of relief.

"Thank StarClan you're all okay. How's Shadowkit?"

"We saved him. He said he tried drowning to bring the Clans together." Asuna meowed with a sigh. "But, if he didn't do that, these two wouldn't be together." She pointed a tail towards Nightheart and Molewhisker, the two blushing.

"We'll need to tell your father about that…and the other thing." Ivypool meowed. She looked over at the nursery and saw Lelouch walk out, the tom catching their scent. He looked over at Nightheart, the she-cat stepping away from Molewhisker.

"Oh! H-hi, father!" She greeted him.

"Is what Asuna said true? Are you both mates?"

"Y-You're not mad, right?" Molewhisker asked, a hint of fear in his meow. Lelouch let out a smile.

"Should I? I had a feeling it would happen eventually." He looked over at Ivypool. "I'm glad to see you're alright, too." He gave her a lick to the cheek.

"Lelouch, we need to talk." Ivypool's tone was serious.

"What happened?" He asked. "Do you not want Molewhisker being with our daughter?"

"No, I approve wholeheartedly. It's about something that happened to Nightheart." She meowed. "Molewhisker tried to save her…but she had already died. Asuna said that she used her scan ability and it told her that Nightheart was dead. Moments later, she came back to life."

"It felt like I died, father. I felt almost exactly the same way I did when I saved Kirito." Nightheart stated. Lelouch looked over at the others, and then back at Ivypool and Nightheart.

"I've been holding something back from you both, well, all of you." He looked over at Nightheart. "You remember the code that I've told you about, right?" She nodded.

"The ones that makes you immortal, correct?"

"Yes. When you died, I spoke with C.C."

"Right. She told me that you took my place, which is why I'm still alive."

"That's part of it." His gaze grew serious. "The main part of it is that you're alive because I transferred my immortal code to you, Nightheart." The she-cat's violet eyes widened in shock.

"W-What?"

"C.C. told me that it was the only way I could keep you from dying. I didn't hesitate when she gave me the option to do so."

"So…you only have one life now?" Ivypool asked, the tom nodding.

"I know I did it to save you, Nightheart, but it's also a curse that I wish I didn't need to place on you." The tom's violet eyes began to glisten. "I love you so much, Nightheart. I couldn't live with myself if you died. I just hope that you aren't mad at me for doing this." The she-cat ran over to her father and pressed her head into his chestfur.

"Oh father! I love you so much!"

"You're not mad?" He asked her. "What I did was selfish. You're going to continue living, but your friends won't. That's what I mean by calling the code a curse."

"I could never be mad at you, father. You did this for me. I know it will all end up hurting eventually…but as long as I'm able to be with our family, I don't care." Lelouch gave her a lick to the ear.

"I should tell you one more thing: The first time you were revived against the battle with the rogues, your Geass didn't change. You've just died a second time, and in having my code, your Geass would be too powerful. When you died a while ago, my Geass disappeared and transferred over to you."

"So…I can't protect cats anymore?"

"Right. You now have the power of absolute obedience. I know I don't need to tell you this, but don't overuse it or you'll be unable to deactivate it."

"This all happened…and you didn't even say anything?" Kirito meowed. "You know if we knew she was immortal we wouldn't have all risked our lives!"

"Kazuto!" Suguha shoved her cousin.

"No, that's definitely my fault. I'm sorry if any of you were in some serious danger." The violet-eyed tom apologized. "I'm sure Nightheart pretty much took my place in bringing the Clans back together tonight, so is it safe to say that there are five Clans again?"

"Not quite. We'll still need to figure out how SkyClan's going to fit back in with us." Bramblestar stated. "But I'm sure every Clan will cooperate this time." The leader saw Kirito let out a yawn, causing him to chuckle. "You all must be tired after today. Get some rest." The warriors all made their way over to their dens and rested down in their nests.

"Well, I think we finally did it. It took a while, but the Clans are all together…again." Noctis meowed.

"Right, and this time, I don't think that's going to change." Lucina added.

"Yup, now we have nothing to worry about. It's been a while." Kirito said.

"Now, we can start seeing how these two are together." Suguha teased, pointing her tail over at Nightheart and Molewhisker.

"W-Well I'm in no rush for anything. We just really admitted everything today." The brown and cream tom said.

"R-Right! Kits and everything else can wait!" The violet-eyed she-cat stammered.

"K-Kits?!"

"O-Oh! I was just using them as an example!" Asuna let out a giggle.

"You both are so cute together!" She looked over at Twigbranch. "You and Finleap have some competition."

"What? I'm sure we're the younger ones here!" Finleap replied. "Doesn't that make us the cuter couple?"

"I mean, Noctis and Twigbranch together is a bit cuter." Suguha told the tom.

"H-Hey, let's not start talking about this now." Noctis said, a slight blush on his face.

"Please!" The gray she-cat begged, causing her to laugh.

"Okay, we'll leave it at that for tonight. We've all been through so much today, after all."

"Say no more. Night, everyone!" Kirito moved around in his nest to get comfortable, causing Asuna to sigh. "C'mon, you know I'm only kidding. Let's get rested for the awesome day we're going to have tomorrow."


	7. Chapter 7: Heartfelt Goodbyes

Chapter 7: Heartfelt Goodbyes

 _"Mommy? Mommy, wake up!"_ Asuna's hazel eyes slowly opened as she heard the voice calling to her. Once her vision cleared, she saw a small black she-cat who seemed to be about the age of an apprentice. "Hi mommy!" Asuna's eyes widened in shock when she realized who the mysterious cat was.

"Yui? What are you doing here?" She asked, joy in her meow as she groomed her daughter with her tongue. "Oh, sorry! I've been so used to being a cat."

"Some of your Clanmates found her while they were on patrol." Asuna looked over at the entrance and saw that it was Bramblestar.

"She looks a lot like her father, that's for sure."

"Kirito and I adopted her while we were in SAO. I'm glad she's been with us for so long."

"That's right! I'll be with mommy and daddy for as long as I can!"

"Well your parents are exceptional, that's for sure." The leader meowed with a small smile. "Asuna, Yui had explained to the others why she appeared all of a sudden. I'm sure you know why." The she-cat could hear a sense of sorrow in the leader's voice. She swiped a paw down and saw that on the menu screen, there was now a 'log out' button. "Take all the time you three need." She closed the menu and looked over at Yui.

"I guess you being here and us needing to leave isn't a coincidence?"

"Right. You, daddy, and Suguha have helped bring the five Clans together, just like Spottedleaf requested." She looked over at the sleeping black tom right next to her. "Daddy?" Yui softly shook the tom with her small paws, Kirito letting out a groan.

"Wha- Okay, okay, I'm awake." He rubbed his eyes with a paw and saw the black she-cat next to him. "Oh…um…hi?"

"Do you not recognize your daughter?" Asuna asked him. Kirito looked over at Yui and after a few seconds, a wide smile appeared on his face.

"Whoa! Hey kiddo, what's up?"

"Daddy!" She leaped towards him and snuggled close to him, giving him countless licks to the face.

"Where'd you come from all of a sudden?" He asked her.

"I was granted access to this world this morning. I've been watching you, mommy, and Suguha ever since you arrived here, but was unable to join you." She explained.

"There was another thing that happened, Kirito." Asuna told him. "Open your menu interface." Kirito swiped a paw down and saw the same log out button that Asuna had.

"Well…we did finally bring the Clans together again. It was bound to happen eventually." He stated, letting out a sigh. "Does Sugu know?"

"I was told that she was out hunting." Yui stated. "Before we go…can I look around the camp?" Asuna nodded.

"Of course. Your father and I need to say bye to everyone, after all." The three walked out of the warriors' den and looked around camp. It seemed like news from the patrol that found Yui traveled quickly. Every cat around the clearing seemed to be saddened by the news. _We really did mean a lot to ThunderClan. They're like a family to us._ Asuna thought. "Do you want to go to the nursery first?" The tom nodded.

"I'm sure Yui would like to meet Foxkit and Swiftkit." They headed over to the nursery and saw that Ivypool and Lelouch were with the two kits, Daisy watching them with a smile.

"Oh, is this your daughter that we were hearing about?" Daisy asked when she saw Yui. "She's adorable, that's for sure."

"You were right, Lelouch. She looks like her father." Ivypool meowed. "Foxkit? Swiftkit? Did you want to say hi?"

"Don't worry, she won't bite." Kirito assured them with a smile. Swiftkit quickly ran over to them, followed by her brother, the two sniffing the small black she-cat.

"They're so cute!" Yui meowed in joy as she looked at them. "Hi! My name's Yui!"

"I'm Swiftkit! This is my brother, Foxkit!" The small silver-and-white tabby kit meowed. "Are you an apprentice? What's it like?"

"She's not an apprentice, Swiftkit. She's Kirito and Asuna's adopted daughter. This is her first time in the forest." Her father explained.

"Didn't you say that Kirito, Asuna, and Suguha needed to leave?" Foxkit asked his father. Lelouch looked over at the two and they nodded. "Oh…"

"Don't be sad, Foxkit. Kirito, Suguha, and I loved playing with you and your sister."

"But we won't be able to play again?" Swiftpaw stated, her peppy demeanor fading. "Do you have to leave?"

"We do. We were brought here to help the Clans, and now that all five are together again, we need to go home." Asuna said.

"So…if we break the peace you'll stay?" Swiftkit stated with joy, Lelouch giving her a small lick to the ear.

"Let's hope your thinking isn't that radical when you grow up." He told her. "This is something that needs to happen, Swiftkit. If you and Foxkit saved another world and needed to come back home, you'd do the same, right?"

"I guess so…"

"We'll never forget you both, I promise." Asuna assured them as she rested down on the floor. "You promise to be good for Lelouch and Ivypool, okay? Oh, and for Nightheart as well."

"We will." The two meowed in unison. Asuna looked over at Kirito.

"Don't you wanna tell them something?"

"Oh, yeah." Kirito rested down on the ground and the two walked over to him. "Like Asuna said, you both need to behave. I know you'll make awesome warriors."

"How can I if you won't be my mentor?" Swiftkit mewed.

"Out of all the cats, you want Kirito?" Lelouch stated. "Anyone but him would be fine."

"Oh c'mon!" Kirito meowed, giving the violet-eyed tom a shove.

"But he's so cool!" The silver-and-white tabby meowed. "Can you stay just to mentor me? Please?" Kirito let out a smile.

"Sorry, Swiftkit." The she-cat pouted. "How about you, Foxkit? Did you want me for a mentor?"

"Father says if I did that I wouldn't make it to my warrior ceremony."

"Lelouch!" Ivypool looked over at her mate in shock, the tom letting out a playful smile.

"I was only kidding, Foxkit. Kirito may be carefree sometimes, but he'd make a good mentor." The tom meowed. "Although, I remember you saying Suguha or Noctis would be your preferred mentor."

"C'mon, Foxkit. Sugu over me? Noctis, I can understand, but not Sugu!" Asuna gave him a small shove. "Actually, none of them said you, Asuna."

"Well I'm both a warrior and a medicine cat. There'd be no way for me to have an apprentice."

"They both love you regardless, Asuna. I'm sure they'd both love having you as a mentor if they could." Ivypool told her. "Okay kits, come back here. They need to say goodbye to the others." Foxkit and Swiftkit ran over to their mother's nest. Asuna looked over at Lelouch and let out a small smile.

"I guess this is goodbye…again." She meowed.

"Yeah, but who knows? Fate brought you and Kirito to the same world I was in, so maybe you'll both come back eventually."

"I hope so." Asuna pressed her head onto the tom's shoulder, Lelouch doing the same. "Take care of your family, alright? They'll need their loving father for as long as they can."

"I have no intention of leaving them, don't worry." He assured her. Asuna broke away from the tom and walked over to say goodbye to Daisy. Kirito looked over at the tom and cracked a smile.

"Guess I'll finally get out of your fur for now. You must be relieved." Lelouch let out a small laugh.

"You have no idea." Kirito then let out a sigh.

"I know it happened so long ago, but again...I'm sorry about what happened at the gorge."

"Hey, you apologized about that when I woke up, remember? There's no need for it, Kirito." He meowed. "Does it still bug you?"

"Should it not? I know it doesn't seem that way, but I'll never forget it. It doesn't help that Nightheart and I…well, I don't know if we feel the same way about each other still, but at the time…"

"You don't have to explain yourself, I understand." Lelouch stated. "Nightheart might take this goodbye to heart, though. You and Asuna are both her friends…but her and Suguha are best friends, the same goes for her and Lucina."

"Yeah, definitely. I'm sure Suguha's going to feel the same way when she hears the news." He meowed. "Well…I guess I hope we meet again, Lelouch."

"Try to make it before Swiftkit becomes an apprentice, okay?"

"No promises." Kirito placed a paw out to give the tom a high five, but quickly changed it to a hug. "C'mon, I got you this way last time, too!"

"That's our toms." Asuna meowed, Ivypool letting out a small giggle. Once he broke away, he joined Asuna in saying bye to Daisy.

"Thanks for coming in here and playing with the kits. You don't know how much fun they have with you both. All of ThunderClan's future kits are definitely going to be missing out."

"We're going to miss playing with them, especially this one and his badger rides."

"Yeah. The Kirito Express is retiring for now."

"Not exactly. You have Yui to play with, remember?" Asuna reminded him with a smile. "Hopefully we can come back, Daisy. You do so much for ThunderClan's kits, and we wouldn't mind helping at all."

"I'd love that. Good luck back in your world, you two." The two nodded and walked over to where Ivypool was, the she-cat greeting them with a smile.

"We're both going to miss you so much, Ivypool. You and Lelouch are one of our favorite couples in ThunderClan. If we come back, you both better still be together." Asuna told her.

"Nothing will ever bring me away from Lelouch, ever. We'll definitely be together if you two return to ThunderClan." She assured them. "It won't feel the same without you both and Suguha around camp. ThunderClan might not feel whole again for a while."

"Don't make them feel even worse about leaving than they already do." Lelouch meowed.

"Right, sorry! I just…that's how I really feel. They've been here for so long and feel like part of the Clan."

"We feel the exact same way. That's why this is so hard for us, too." Kirito told her.

"He's right. I've actually been dreading this day, to be honest. We've been here for so long that it feels like home." Asuna added, letting out a sigh. "Anyway, I'm sorry that this tom got involved with Nightheart for a bit. You'd think he'd be loyal to me."

"I guess I deserve that…"

"I'm just kidding, Kirito. I know how sweet Nightheart is…and you both do look cute together."

"If you and Asuna weren't together, I'd approve, Kirito." Ivypool meowed. "I remember seeing how happy Nightheart would be returning back to camp after going out on patrol with you. You both are amazing friends." A blush formed on the tom's face.

"Thanks, Ivypool." Both he and Asuna brushed coats with Ivypool one last time before leaving the nursery alongside Yui.

"What?!" They looked across the clearing and saw Squirrelflight talking with Suguha, the black she-cat in shock. She had just returned from hunting and the deputy told her the news. Once she saw Asuna, Kirito, and Yui, she ran over to them. "Is what Squirrelflight said true?"

"Yes. I'm sorry, Suguha." Yui apologized. Suguha was too distraught with sorrow to realize that Yui was now with them.

"Kirito, did you want to take Yui around camp? I'm going to the medicine den."

"Alright, c'mon Yui." He motioned his daughter forward with his tail. "Are you going to be okay, Sugu?"

"I…I don't know."

"Suguha?" Kirito saw that it was Nightheart approaching them. "Hi, Kirito. Who's this?"

"This is Yui. She's me and Asuna's adopted daughter."

"Hi! I heard that daddy likes you." A blush formed on Nightheart's face.

"Oh, w-well I don't know if that still applies now…but I'm aware."

"Okay, Yui, let's go before you say anything else!" Kirito and Yui left Suguha and Nightheart alone, the violet-eyed she-cat still confused by her friend's surprise.

"Suguha, are you alright?"

"I'm…I'm sorry, Nightheart." She apologized, her dark gray eyes glistening with tears.

"Sorry for what?"

"Squirrelflight told me that…Kirito, Asuna, and I are able to leave now. I need to go back home, Nightheart." The black she-cat let out a gasp.

"O-Oh…" She began to wipe her eyes with a paw. "I…guess this had to happen someday, right."

"Nightheart…" The she-cat felt a tail on her shoulder and saw that it was her father. "It's okay to cry. You both are amazing friends. A goodbye like this is meant to hurt."

"But…she can't leave, father! Suguha means so much to me! She's always there to talk with me whenever I need someone a-and…" Nightheart couldn't speak anymore, her sorrow completely taking over. She broke away from her father and pressed her head into Suguha's shoulder, the other she-cat doing the same.

"I'm so sorry, Nightheart! I'm going to miss you so much!" She sobbed. "I've never had a friend as caring and sweet as you." Lelouch could feel his chest tighten at the sight of his daughter and Suguha. _It doesn't help that Nightheart also is best friends with Lucina. She's going to go through so much today._ In the middle of their heartfelt goodbye, Nightheart glanced over at Lelouch.

"Father…is there a way for Suguha to come visit?"

"I don't have the answer to that, Nightheart. I'm sorry." He apologized.

"I promise if I can come back here I'll visit often…and so will Kirito and Asuna as well." Suguha told her. "It has to be possible…it just has to be." Lelouch looked over at the entrance to the camp and saw Noctis along with a mysterious white cat.

"I'll leave you both alone for now. Take all the time you need." The violet-eyed tom made his way over to the entrance, Noctis and the cat he was with looking over at him.

"Hey, Lelouch. I'm guessing you're wondering who this is, huh?" The tom nodded. "This is Luna."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Luna bowed her head.

"Likewise." The tom responded. "Can I assume you're here to bring Noctis back home?"

"I wouldn't call it 'home' exactly. Afterlife is more like it." Noctis stated. "But I'm with Luna, so it's all good."

"You don't have to leave, Noctis." The white she-cat meowed. "I'd learn to live here with you if you'd like."

"I know, you told me this a couple times as we were walking back here when I found you." Noctis looked over at her. "Y'know, I think you just want me to stay cause you think I'm cuter this way."

"Don't deny that you feel that way about me as a cat." Luna retorted. "In all seriousness, Noctis, you'd be leaving Twigbranch and Alderheart. You know how much you mean to them. Are you willing to let that go?" The tom hesitated, unable to respond.

"You didn't bring me here to stay forever, Luna, you know that." He replied. "I'll miss them both like crazy, but this isn't home." He said. "Can't you just let me visit from time to time?"

"I'm not sure, Noctis. This was my first time doing something like this." Luna said softly. "Your mind seems to be made up. You should say your goodbyes before we leave. I'm in no rush."

"Noct!" The tom turned around and saw Twigbranch pass through the entrance to camp followed by the other hunting patrol for the morning. "Oh, and Luna too! Hi!"

"Hello, Twigbranch. You've grown so much since I last saw you." Luna meowed, letting out a small smile.

"So…this is Noctis' mate? You both look cute together." Cherryfall meowed, causing the pair to blush.

"Is she here to join the Clan with you?" Lionblaze asked. Luna looked over at Noctis, the tom letting out a sigh before shaking his head.

"Luna's here to take me back home." Noctis told them. "I helped bring the Clans together like I was brought here to do, so it's time to pack it all up."

"What?" Noctis looked over at Twigbranch when he heard the distraught tone in her voice.

"Do you all mind giving us a bit?" Noctis asked the others. They nodded and left the group. "Lelouch, you mind showing Luna around? Don't try to steal her from me, though."

"Noct!" A blush formed on Luna's face.

"You don't have to worry." With a flick of his tail, the violet-eyed tom motioned the she-cat to follow him, leaving Noctis and Twigbranch alone.

"Twigbranch…" Noctis stopped when he noticed her eyes begin to glisten with tears. "C'mon, you're going to make this harder for me if you cry."

"S-Should I not be?" She wiped her eyes with a paw. "I knew that you'd have to leave eventually…but I never prepared myself for when it would happen." Twigbranch sniffled. "We've…been through so much together, Noct. You're one of my favorite cats in all the Clans." She sobbed. "I…love you so much…" Noctis' gaze softened, the tom letting out an annoyed sigh.

"Great…now look what you've done." Noctis meowed, wiping his eyes with a paw. "I won't forget you, Twigbranch. It'd be too hard to. I know you like me, but I've always seen you like a little sister. Thanks for that."

"Oh! W-When I said I loved you, I meant it in a sibling way! Sorry if you took it the wrong way." The black tom let out a small laugh.

"Don't worry, I know you secretly mean it the other way, too." Twigbranch gave the tom a shove.

"I won't miss you teasing me, though!" She responded before pressing her head into the tom's chestfur, letting out a loving purr. "Thank you for everything, Noctis. You're the best older brother any cat could ask for." She looked up at the tom, tears slowly streaming down his face, although he still kept a cool composure. "Y'know it's okay to show some emotion. You don't always have to be the cool tom Noct."

"Can't be letting the others see my soft side, even though I'm leaving." He told her.

"Are you ever going to come back?" Twigbranch asked, Noctis avoiding her gaze. "It's okay if you don't. It would mean that there's not any approaching danger, after all."

"Of course I'd love to come back and visit, Twigbranch…but Luna says she's not sure if it's possible." He gave her a light pat on the head. "But like I said, I'll never forget you."

"I won't either…I promise."

In the medicine den, Asuna had told the others that she, Kirito, and Suguha were finally going home. Asuna could see the sorrow in the three cats' faces when she told them the news.

"It was bound to happen eventually, after all." Leafpool meowed. "We've loved having you around here helping us, Asuna. Words can't express that enough."

"Yeah. I can't believe it's been so long, though. You've been here ever since I was an apprentice." Alderheart added. "There's so much you've been through while you were in our world. I'm sure your friends in your world will find this all hard to believe."

"Definitely." Asuna said, letting out a small giggle. She looked over at Jayfeather, the tom still silent. "Jayfeather?"

"Yes, Asuna?" His blind gaze looked over at her.

"Thank you for everything you and Leafpool taught me while I was learning with Alderheart. I know I've said it a million times, but I can't stress it enough."

"You shouldn't be thanking me. I was the one who drove you out of the medicine den more than once, remember?"

"It wasn't your fault, I told you that already." The cream she-cat insisted. "I don't want you thinking that even after I leave. You already have so much to worry about."

"Right…" Jayfeather suddenly felt Asuna place her head on his shoulder, a sudden blush on his face. "Asuna…I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, Jayfeather. You're not exactly hard to forget, either." She meowed. "Just promise to continue being nice to Alderheart. You've been doing well so far."

"Well he hasn't messed up much lately, so I can't exactly promise that." He joked, letting out a slight grin. "But I'll try my best." Asuna gave the blind tom a small lick to the cheek, causing the blush on his face to burn even more. "You enjoy being the only cat able to control me, huh?"

"Maybe a little bit." Asuna looked over at Alderheart and saw the tom wiping his eyes with a paw. She walked over to him and he let out a small smile.

"Sorry for crying, Asuna. I'm just going to miss you all so much."

"I know, Alderheart. It was so hard for me when Yui told us the news. I knew it had to happen eventually, but every day I was relieved knowing I could stay here with you and the others in ThunderClan for an extra day." She meowed, giving the tom a lick to the ear.

"Then why don't you and the others just stay like Lelouch?" Alderheart wondered.

"Alderheart, you know why they can't do that." Leafpool meowed as she walked over to join them. "As much as we'll miss Asuna and the others, this isn't their real home, but we all wish it was."

"You all have felt like family to me ever since I first started training. All the memories we've shared here…" Asuna's hazel eyes began to glisten. "I'll always cherish them…so, so much." She looked over at Alderheart and let out a warm smile. "I know you'll continue being an amazing medicine cat, Alderheart. You're a blessing to ThunderClan."

"But…what if I need your help, Asuna? When I'm leading myself astray, you've always been there to help me."

"Leafpool and Jayfeather can help you just as well. They'd love for you to rely on them for any problems that you have." She assured him.

"Okay…" He wiped his eyes with a paw. "I'll try my best for ThunderClan, and for you, Asuna." The she-cat gave him another loving lick to the ear before turning to face Leafpool.

"I don't know where to begin, Leafpool. You're the most caring cat I've gotten to know here."

"I could say the same thing about you, Asuna. Being a medicine cat definitely suits you. I'm happy that my father put you on this path. You've always been selfless ever since you first started training as a medicine cat."

"Can you apologize to him the next time you see him? I feel like I've been more of a medicine cat than a medicine cat and warrior." Leafpool let out a warm smile.

"I'm sure he doesn't mind one bit." Leafpool approached the she-cat and rested her head on Asuna's shoulder, Asuna doing the same to her. "Be safe in your world, okay? If there's any chance you can come back, we'll all want to see you and the others again."

"I'll try my best to avoid any death games." The cats heard the brambles leading into the den rustle and saw that it was Suguha, the black she-cat still saddened by the news.

"Are you here to speak with Alderheart?" Leafpool asked, the she-cat nodding in silence. From behind her, Noctis entered the den and looked around.

"Is…this not a good time? Just wanted to talk with Alderheart for a bit before talking with you two."

"Are you leaving too, Noctis?" Asuna asked, the tom nodding.

"Yeah…" His voice trailed off. "Wait, you're leaving as well?" The cream she-cat nodded. Noctis looked over at Alderheart and could see the same reaction on his face that Twigbranch had. _I can't stay here, Alderheart…you know that._

"You can talk with him first, Noct." Suguha muttered.

"Sure. Alderheart?" The tom followed him outside of the den.

"This isn't fair…" Noctis turned around when Alderheart spoke. "You all have to leave at the same time? Do you not know how much this hurts?"

"I can imagine, Alderheart. I just spoke with Twigbranch about leaving. Talking to you right after is as hard." He placed a tail on his shoulder. "You knew this had to happen eventually, though, right?" Alderheart nodded.

"It's just…ever since I freed you from that crystal, Noct…you've felt like a brother to me. I know it sounds dumb, but…"

"Trust me, it doesn't, not even the slightest." He assured him. "You and Twigbranch are both the same: You're making it hard for me to leave." The black tom let out a sigh. "You know you're one of the cats I'll miss the most, right?"

"Really?"

"C'mon, I thought it was obvious." Noctis meowed. "You're cool to hang out with, even though that means sometimes dealing with Jayfeather. Just like Twigbranch…you seem like a sibling to me, too." Alderheart wiped his amber eyes before letting out a small smile.

"I'm happy to hear that, Noct."

"Hey, don't go around telling the others I'm sounding this way when I leave. Can't imagine what I'd hear if I ever came back."

"Your emotional side is safe with me and Twigbranch."

"Great." Noctis stood there in thought. "So…" Noctis let out a gasp of surprise when he felt Alderheart wrap his paws around him in a hug.

"I'll miss you, Noct."

"Yeah, I know. Miss you too, Alderheart." Once their hug was over, Noctis let out a small laugh. "What I didn't know is that cats actually hugged.

"Oh, Asuna does it a lot, so I followed by example. She says that's how Twolegs say goodbye." He meowed.

"Are you both okay?" They saw that it was Luna.

"What? Yeah, we're all good." Noctis assured her.

"It's good to see you again, Alderheart."

"It's great to see you as well, Luna." The medicine cat meowed. "I guess it's time for you and Noctis to be together again, huh?"

"Yes. I'm sorry that he has to leave now. I know how close you both are." Luna looked over at Noctis. "Lelouch's kits are looking for you. They want to say goodbye."

"Right, definitely can't forget to see them before we leave." The tom meowed. "We'll see you again before I leave, Alderheart. I know you and Suguha need to talk as soon as possible."

"Yeah…" Alderheart looked back at the medicine den once Noctis and Luna made their way over to the nursery. He saw Suguha looking out at him and she left the den once she saw he was free to talk.

"Alderheart…I'm going to miss you so much." The black she-cat meowed. He saw that her eyes were already glistening with tears. "Promise that you'll never forget me? Please?"

"Suguha…how could I? I love you so much. I couldn't forget you even if I tried. You mean the world to me. Ever since I was an apprentice you've been there for me. How could I forget a cat as amazing as you?" He stated. "Knowing that I won't see you every day anymore hurts. I just have to hope that you're safe and doing well from now on…"

"Oh, Alderheart…" Suguha wiped her eyes with a paw. "You're so sweet. I'm so happy that I got the chance to meet you." A small smile formed on the she-cat's face. "There's something else I need to tell you."

"What is it?" A strong blush formed on Alderheart's face when the she-cat pressed her head into his chestfur. "Suguha…"

"I love you, Alderheart. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize the feelings I've had for you." She looked up at the tom and saw that he was in shock.

"Y-You…love me? T-The same exact way?" She nodded.

"I didn't want to tell you since I didn't want to distract you from any prophecies…but now that it's all over…you should know the truth." She confessed.

"I…I can't believe it!" A sudden spark of joy filled the tom's voice. "Sorry, I know that I should be sad that you're leaving…but how can I be knowing that you love me?" The she-cat let out a small giggle.

"Maybe it would've been better if I kept it to myself. You seem _way_ too happy."

"Sorry, sorry. It's just…almost like a dream come true." He let out a sigh. "Not like we could have a family or anything anyways since I'm a medicine cat." A blush formed on Suguha's face.

"F-Family? I was really only thinking like a boyfriend-girlfriend thing."

"Meaning?"

"What Kirito and Asuna have, minus Yui."

"Oh, well that works out for both of us!" He meowed. "Hey, at least we're both smiling now. No more tears."

"You're right. Thanks, Alderheart."

"You're welcome." Suguha gave the tom a kiss to the cheek, causing him to blush. "Do you think that there's any possibility of you and the others coming back?"

"We did come here through a game, so I'd say so…hopefully."

"That makes this goodbye a lot less harder." He meowed. "Thanks for everything, Suguha. I hope you're able to visit again."

"You and me both. Just…don't expect me to not find a mate back in my world if I get the chance."

"Right. I mean, you're originally a Twoleg after all. Try not to bring him here, though."

Near the warriors' den, Nightheart stood with Kirito and Asuna, the three happy after seeing Suguha finally tell Alderheart how she felt.

"I'm glad Alderheart's still able to be happy about it all even though she's leaving." Nightheart meowed. "I'm going to miss you both so much, too."

"We'll miss you as much, Nightheart, although one of us might a bit more." Asuna looked at Kirito with a sly glint in her hazel eyes, the tom becoming flustered. "C'mon, you can tell her. You're the first cat she's ever fallen in love with, after all."

"I still can't believe you're okay with all of this."

"Because it's cute!"

"Asuna, stop it…" Nightheart meowed in embarrassment. She looked over at Kirito. "I never had so much fun hunting and going out on patrols before you came, Kirito. Thank you for that."

"It's what I do best." He said with a smile. "I, um…enjoyed spending time with you back then, Nightheart." Yui gave the tom a small nuzzle to get his attention.

"Daddy, I've seen how close you've gotten. I think you can say more."

"Yui's right. Is that _all_ you have to tell her?" Asuna asked.

"W-Well it's hard saying things when you're here!" The tom retorted.

"I told you it was okay with me. Just tell her how you feel. You still like her, right?"

"A bit, yeah." He confessed. "I just…try not to express it a lot…" Kirito shifted his paws. "She's fun to be around, a-and she's kindhearted. Also…" Nightheart placed her tail over the tom's mouth.

"You don't have to say anything else, Kirito." She assured him. "My feelings for you have died down as well, but there are still some there for you. Asuna's very lucky to have a tom like you."

"I think lucky is being too nice." Asuna joked.

"C'mon, I think it's just right." The tom replied. "Why don't Yui and I leave you both to say goodbye? We're gonna go bother Sugu." He looked over at Nightheart. "Hopefully we'll see you again soon, Nightheart."

"I hope so, too." She meowed, letting out a smile. "Bye, Yui! I can't wait to spend more time with you if possible."

"Bye, Nightheart!" The small black she-cat waved before leaving the two older she-cats alone.

"She's so cute."

"My heart almost melted when I woke up and saw her." Asuna stated. "Nightheart, you're one of the sweetest cats in ThunderClan. I'm so glad that I was able to meet you. It's easy to see why Kirito likes you."

"Thank you, Asuna…but I can say the same about you. I've never once seen you put yourself ahead of others. You've really been a blessing to every Clan in this forest." Nightheart meowed. "I hope this isn't our last goodbye."

"Me too. I'd miss spending time with you." Asuna pressed her head on the she-cat's shoulder. "Take care, okay? You have a brother and sister who I'm sure will need their older sister."

"I will." Nightheart brushed muzzles with the she-cat. "You be safe as well, Asuna. Try not to be stuck in any games anymore."

"I'll try my best. I wish you and Molewhisker the best, too." The two shared one final smile before Asuna walked towards Kirito, Suguha, and Alderheart.

"I help her sometimes, but she does most of the helping for me." Alderheart meowed before looking over at Kirito. "She looks exactly like you, Kirito. I wouldn't know she was adopted if you didn't say anything."

"Yeah, unfortunately she has her dad as a main role model." They heard Asuna meow as she walked over to join them. "So…I heard someone let out a cheer. Did you tell him, Suguha?" The she-cat nodded. "That's great! Too bad we didn't have enough time to go on that date we planned out."

"Well, all the more reason for us to find a way to come back here, right Yui?"

"Yes! I want to continue seeing how living in this world is like! This time I'll be here to help you, mommy, and Suguha!" Yui exclaimed with joy.

"Guess that means we should get to work, then." Kirito swiped his paw down and hovered it over the 'log out' button.

"Where do you think you're going?" Kirito turned around and saw that it was Squirrelflight and Bramblestar.

"You're going to leave without saying goodbye to the leader who brought you in?" The tabby tom said, cracking a small grin.

"Don't mind him. He's just a bit excited to see if there's a way we can come and visit from time to time." Asuna meowed.

"Do you think that's possible? If so that would be wonderful." Squirrelflight purred in joy.

"Yes, although not having one big mouth to feed would greatly help the Clan." The leader looked over at Kirito, who let out a sigh.

"C'mon, I told you all to tell me if I've taken too much prey…"

"He's only kidding, Kirito." The deputy assured him. "We'll both miss you three greatly. Maybe have your daughter stay for a little longer, too. She is too cute!"

"Thank you!" Yui quickly meowed.

"We'll try to come back as soon as we can. The three of us can't be any more grateful for letting us stay in ThunderClan. It's hard leaving the family we have here behind…a bit too hard, actually." Asuna said, wiping her hazel eyes with a paw.

"We know you can't stay here permanently, but just dropping by from time to time would make us and your Clanmates more than happy, if it's possible, that is." Bramblestar stated. "Well…I guess this is goodbye, for now, hopefully."

"Yeah, we'll try our best to not make this goodbye the last one." Kirito meowed as he, Asuna, and Suguha swiped a paw down to open their menu screen. "You both ready?"

"Bye, Alderheart." Suguha gave the tom one final lick to the cheek before giving her cousin a nod of her head. With one single movement of their paws, the others watched as the three began to glow before they finally disappeared.

In the nursery, Noctis sat down with Luna, the two playing with Swiftkit and Foxkit. Noctis swished his tail along the floor, the two kits trying their best to chase after it.

"They're so adorable, you two." Luna told them with a warm smile. "I wish I was as lucky as Noctis and got to stay here for a while."

"You're not guilt tripping me, Luna." Noctis meowed.

"I'm doing no such thing!"

"Well, do you want to stay here, Noctis?" Ivypool asked the tom.

"It's…complicated, okay? Yeah, I'd like to, but I don't belong here."

"But you can be just like my dad and stay!" Swiftkit meowed before pouncing on Noctis' tail.

"Ow, hey, watch the teeth, Swiftkit!" Noctis meowed. "Look, I know I could, but…" He sighed. "It's hard to explain without sounding like I don't want to be here."

"Let's not bug Noctis about it. He's made his choice." Lelouch stated. He looked over at Nightheart and saw that her head was still rested down on her paws, sorrow in her eyes.

"Nightheart, are you okay?" The she-cat looked up and saw her brother's soft violet gaze looking at her.

"I'm alright, Foxkit." She gave him a lick to the ear. "Just thinking about a lot."

"Suguha?" He asked, his sister nodding.

"Kirito and Asuna as well."

"But didn't Kirito say they could come back?" Swiftkit asked, joining in on their sibling conversation.

"Yes, but he was only guessing. What if this was the last time we ever see them?"

"You still have the memories you created with them." Nightheart looked over at Luna. "No matter how far they go, the memories will forever stay with you, Nightheart. They might not seem like enough now, but later on they will, I promise." The violet-eyed she-cat let out a small smile.

"Thank you, Luna." She meowed. "You're very beautiful and kind. I can see why Noctis likes you."

"Well then Noctis must have some feelings for you as well then." She replied, Noctis looking at her in shock.

"W-What? No I don't!" He looked over at Nightheart and saw a slight hint of embarrassment on her face. "Sorry about that, Nightheart."

"I-It's okay, she was just joking." She assured him.

"But you think Noctis is somewhat attractive, right, Nightheart?" The small silver and white tabby kit asked.

"S-Swiftkit!" The blush on Nightheart's face increased. "W-Well…he is handsome…but I only want to be friends with him!" Noctis looked at her in surprise.

"Well, I think…you're cute." Noctis' voice trailed off and he avoided Nightheart's violet gaze. "J-Just don't let Molewhisker know I said that."

"T-Thank you, Noctis." The she-cat meowed. "This has gotten a bit awkward…hasn't it?"

"A bit, yeah."

"You know you didn't need to admit anything, right?" Lelouch whispered to his daughter. "As for you…" He picked up Swiftkit by the scruff. "It's too soon to start teasing your older sister."

"Sorry, Nightheart." The silver and white tabby apologized. "You too, Noct."

"It's alright, just a bit of a joke…that kinda ended up a bit serious." Noctis said. "Well, I guess Luna and I should get to the warriors' den so I can say bye to the others."

"Bye, Noctis. If you can come back to visit, please do. The kits love playing with you." Ivypool told him.

"I think I might like it a bit more than they do." He looked down at the kits. "Hopefully I'll get to see you both again before you grow up."

"Well, let us grow a little bit! You can mentor Foxkit if you come back!"

"I would like that a lot." The tom admitted.

"We'll see what Luna can do." He told them. "Alright, let's go over to the warriors' den." As the two were walking about, they bumped into Lucina.

"Oh…my apologies, Noctis."

"It's alright." He looked back into the den before leaning close to the she-cat. "You leaving this world, too?" He whispered, the she-cat nodding. "Thought so. Luna and I will see you later then."

"Luna?" Lucina looked over at the white she-cat. "Oh, you must be Noctis' betrothed. It's nice to meet you."

"You as well, Lucina." She meowed with a nod. "I don't want to hold you away from saying goodbye."

"It's okay. I'll talk to you both later." Once they left, Lucina let out a breath and entered the nursery. When her gaze touched Nightheart's violet eyes, she saw the she-cat gasp and look away.

"Nightheart, I know this is going to be hard for you, but it's what needs to happen." Lelouch told her.

"But…first Suguha…and now Lucina?"

"I'm sorry that it has to be this way, Nightheart." Lucina meowed as she sat across from the she-cat. "Spottedleaf had just told me while I was asleep." The she-cat's blue eyes began to glisten. "You're such an amazing friend, Nightheart. Coming into this world and getting to meet you…I couldn't have been more fortunate. I know you're hurting right now…but you're not alone. Once I return to Ylisse, I know I'll start to miss you as well." Nightheart's violet eyes began to shimmer, tears slowly falling down her face.

"Oh, Lucina!" Nightheart pressed her head onto the she-cat's shoulder, the blue-gray she-cat doing the same. "I'll never forget finding you that day. Thank you so much for being my friend." Lucina broke away from the she-cat and wiped her eyes with a paw.

"There's something I want you to have to remember me by." With a paw, Lucina removed her tiara and placed it in front of Nightheart.

"Y-Your tiara? Lucina, I can't. Your mother gave it to you." The blue-eyed she-cat shook her head.

"I know, but my mother is alive and well now. It used to be what I'd remember her by, but now I'd like you to have it. You are somewhat of a princess, after all." She grabbed her tiara in her mouth and slowly placed it on Nightheart's head. "There. It suits you."

"Nightheart, you look so pretty with it!" Swiftkit meowed. "Can I have one too, Lucina? Please?"

"I'm sorry, I only have one. Maybe Nightheart can let you try it on when you get older." She replied. Nightheart's violet eyes looked over at her.

"A-Are you sure I can keep this, Lucina?"

"I insist. I know mother might be a bit mad that I lost the tiara she gifted me, but I can get another one."

"Thank you…" The she-cat sniffled. "I wish I could give you something, too."

"The memories we've made in this world are more than enough of a parting gift." Lucina looked over at Lelouch and Ivypool. "You both have raised an amazing daughter. I'm sure these two little ones will be as great as her."

"Thank you, Lucina. Your parents must be proud of you as well for everything you've done before coming here." Ivypool meowed.

"Yes. I'll just see if father and mother believe in me when they ask where I've been for so long."

"Hopefully they haven't been worrying too long. Time in this world flows differently than other worlds." Lelouch explained.

"That would be a relief." Lucina looked down and saw Foxkit poking her forepaw. "Yes, Foxkit?"

"Is there any way you can come back to visit?"

"Yeah, is there? Kirito, Asuna, and Suguha said that it could be possible, and so did Noct." Swiftkit added.

"Hmm…there might be a way. Possibly a spell that can create a portal that can come here. Maybe I could bring father along one day and my friends as well."

"I'm sure you just made someone's day." Lelouch meowed, looking over at Nightheart with a smile.

"I'd really like that, Lucina."

"I'll try my best to figure something out. Robin's always been good with magic, so she might know if something like this is possible." She told them. "I should go and say goodbye to the others. Spottedleaf said the Outrealm Gate leading back home would appear soon."

"You better be on your way then." The violet-eyed tom meowed.

"Right. Again, thank you all for everything. You really do have one big, wonderful family. I hope I get the opportunity to see you all again one day." With a final smile from the others in the nursery, Lucina left the den, joining Noctis in saying her final goodbyes to the cats in ThunderClan.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/

"So, are you both ready to leave now?" Bramblestar asked the two cats as they walked together to say goodbye to the ThunderClan leader.

"Yeah. Thanks for letting me stay in ThunderClan, Bramblestar. Really had some good times around here." Noctis stated.

"Right. It's been a blessing to get to know you and the rest of the Clanmates we've been so lucky to meet." Lucina added.

"I can say the same to you both as well. No doubt you'll be in the stories that our elders will tell to the next generation of our Clan." The leader meowed. "You both have done a lot for the Clans. I thank you both for your heroism. I'm sure the other leaders feel the same way as well."

"Hey, if the Clans ever need saving again, I'll be available." The black tom told him. "Maybe I should be telling that to you, Luna."

"I'll try my best to try and keep in touch with Spottedleaf." The white she-cat replied.

"I hope Spottedleaf does the same. I'd have no problem with helping the Clans once again. Maybe I can bring some of my friends and allies to help as well." Lucina meowed.

"We'd all appreciate having you both return to ThunderClan again. It might take a bit getting used to having Lelouch be the only cat not from this world again." Squirrelflight said with a sigh. "Sorry, I don't mean to sound a bit sentimental before you both go."

"These two have become part of your Clan, so it's okay to feel that way." Luna assured her.

"Yeah. You all have touched our lives in one way or another. We won't forget that." Noctis said, causing Bramblestar to chuckle.

"That wasn't a very Noctis-esque statement." The black tom became flustered.

"Yeah, well…speaking from the heart, y'know?"

"I think I might have somewhat rubbed off on you all this time. I didn't even realize." Luna meowed with a giggle.

"That's definitely what this is. Thanks a lot, Luna." The group all shared a laugh. "Okay, well, guess I'm ready to head back."

"Very well." Luna looked over at Bramblestar and Squirrelflight. "Thank you for letting him stay in ThunderClan. I appreciate the kindness that your Clan has shown him."

"It's the least we could do. Feel free to let him visit any time." The ThunderClan leader meowed. Luna stood beside Noctis, the she-cat's blue gaze touching his.

"Ready?"

"Yeah." Luna placed one of her paws over Noctis', the two cats beginning to shine. Their bodies began to both slowly disappear, until finally, they were gone, leaving a trail of sparkles in the air where they once were.

"Should we be expecting you to disappear as well?" Bramblestar asked Lucina, the she-cat shaking her head.

"Spottedleaf says I need to return to where I first was when I arrived here."

"Well, we don't want to hold you away from home any longer than we already have." The tom meowed. "We hope you make it back safe."

"Thank you." Lucina bowed her head and then looked back around camp. "All of you. I know I wasn't here as long as the others, but I'm just happy to have met each and every one of you. I wish your Clan a hopeful future filled with peace for as long as possible." The she-cat turned and made her way past the thorn tunnel and into the forest.

Lucina walked through ThunderClan territory, remembering the location of the clearing where she woke up at when she first arrived. When she reached the clearing, she saw that there was now an Outrealm Gate open for her. She walked towards it and let out a breath. _I guess it's time to return home._

"Lucina, wait!" The she-cat turned around and saw Nightheart run over to her.

"Nightheart, what are you doing here?"

"I just…wanted to say goodbye one last time before you go." She meowed, gazing around the clearing afterwards. "This is exactly where we first met. It doesn't feel like it was long ago."

"I remember it like it was yesterday. Teaching me how to walk on paws, you explaining the Clans to me…If you think about it, you've helped me the most in this world, Nightheart."

"I'm happy to hear that." Nightheart meowed, wiping her violet eyes with a paw. "Sorry if it seems like I'm crying again; I'm just teary-eyed this time." Lucina let out a smile. "Be safe in Ylisse, Lucina. I hope we can see each other soon."

"I hope so, too." She meowed. "I'll never forget you, Nightheart." The violet-eyed she-cat walked over to her and pressed her head under her chin, letting out a purr. Once she moved away, Nightheart readjusted her tiara.

"I promise to take good care of it, Lucina."

"I know you will." Lucina's blue gaze touched her violet eyes. "I guess this is goodbye, Nightheart."

"Goodbye, Lucina." The blue-gray she-cat made her way through the Outrealm Gate, Nightheart watching as it disappeared a few seconds later. Although her heart hurt, she knew that this was going to happen eventually. _I'm more than grateful to have met all of these cats not from this world. The Clans have been saved thanks to them…but more than that, they've given me so many amazing memories that I know I'll never forget._


	8. Epilogue

Epilogue

 _"Kazuto? Hey, Kazuto,_ wake up." Kirito's eyes slowly opened and he saw that it was Suguha. He let out a yawn and stretched his arms.

"Morning, Sugu."

"Are you ready to get to work?"

"Yeah. I'm sure Yui's been waiting for me too, probably." Kirito got out of bed and sat down in his computer chair. "Good news is that I think we're pretty close to figuring this out."

"That's great! We should tell Asuna!"

"Right, I'll send her a video call right now." He said, giving his mouse a few clicks. "I know this was a month ago, but I still find it hard to believe that we were cats for almost a year, but a day didn't even pass by."

"I know! At least we didn't worry anybody. Everyone would've thought we were caught in an SAO-esque situation." Suguha stated. "Any idea how that was possible?"

"Spottedleaf, maybe? We did get the e-mail from her, so some sort of magic had to be involved."

"Morning, you two." The siblings looked over at the computer screen and saw that it was Asuna. "Is Yui awake?"

"Not yet. I think she's been trying to work on this by herself overnight." Kirito answered.

"I'm here!" Yui suddenly popped up on Kirito's monitor, letting out a yawn.

"Yui, if you're tired, you can sleep still. We're in no rush to return back to ThunderClan." Asuna assured her.

"But, I think I got it, mommy!" She told her. "See?" On Kirito's screen, a new icon appeared. It was a box-shaped emblem, with two triangles on the top corners, almost resembling a cat head. Diagonally, a thunderbolt parted the box.

"Nice, Yui! Sorry that I couldn't stay up with you last night to help."

"That's okay, daddy. We were really close to solving it last night, so I wanted to finish it." She told him. "I've sent the file to both Suguha and mommy, so you should be ready to use it with your AmuSphere. Just know that now it'll feel like a game. You'll be able to log out, and unlike with the portal file, time will pass by here at the same rate as it does in the lake territories."

"Got it." Kirito nodded. "So, are you three ready to visit ThunderClan again?"

"Do you even need to ask? See you all there!" Suguha ran over to her room, Asuna letting out a laugh.

"I think she's excited to see Alderheart again." Kirito told her. "This is where you say I'm excited to see Nightheart, right?"

"Are you, Kirito?" The hazel-eyed girl asked.

"I'm definitely excited to see everyone again." He replied. "Do you think Swiftkit's ready to be an apprentice yet?"

"We've only been gone for a month. I think she still has a bit of growing to do."

"Mommy, daddy, can we go now? I want to be a cat again!"

"You heard her. See you in the forest, Asuna." Kirito ended the video call and put his AmuSphere on before lying down in bed. _Getting out of bed just to go back in it minutes later, just like when we first entered the forest._ Once the game file was loaded in, he let out a breath. "Let's hope this works. Link Start!"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Kirito's eyes shot open as he got up. He looked down at the grass below him and then saw two black paws. _It worked! We're back!_

"Daddy!" Kirito turned around and saw a small black cat run over to him.

"Hey, Yui. Did you see Sugu or Asuna yet?"

"Not yet. You should check your map."

"Map?" Kirito swiped a paw down and saw many other options available in his menu. "Whoa, now this feels like a game."

"Just don't treat anyone as an NPC. This world is still as real as it was before."

"Right. Now, let's see." Kirito opened up his map and saw that he was near the river between ThunderClan and WindClan. He didn't see any indicators for the other two she-cats. "Don't tell me that they're going to fall from the sky and onto me!" He looked up, but let out a sigh of relief when he saw that it wasn't the case. "So, where are they?" In front of him, Kirito watched as two bright silhouettes appeared in front of him, the light fading to reveal the cat forms of Asuna and Suguha. They both got up and the same time and looked at each other.

"We're here! Let's go to ThunderClan!" Suguha meowed with joy, running in the direction of the camp.

"We should probably follow her." Asuna said with a giggle before she, Kirito, and Yui made their way towards ThunderClan's camp.

When they arrived at the thorn tunnel leading into ThunderClan, they each looked at each other.

"Do you think anything's changed ever since we left?" Kirito wondered.

"I doubt it's anything drastic. We've only been gone for a month, after all." Asuna meowed. "We should get inside. I think we're holding Suguha back right now." The four cats passed through the thorn tunnel and set paw into camp for the first time ever since they left. Every single pair of eyes in the clearing was on them when they entered.

"Kirito! Asuna! Suguha!" Squirrelflight ran over to greet the cats. "Oh, Yui, too! It's so wonderful to see you four again!"

"Hopefully we weren't gone for too long." Kirito joked. "Everything looks just the way we left it." The rest of the Clan began to crowd around them, overjoyed of their return.

"Suguha!" The black she-cat turned around and saw Nightheart running over to her from the warriors' den. Suguha didn't hesitate to close the distance between them both, the two brushing their coats together. "I'm so happy that you were able to come back!"

"How do you think I feel? I've missed you so much, Nightheart." She replied. "How have you been?"

"Great! Nothing much has changed ever since you've left, except for Swiftkit and Foxkit growing a bit." Nightheart looked over at Asuna and Kirito and walked over to the two, Suguha following behind. "I'm so happy to see you both as well, oh, and you too, Yui." The violet-eyed she-cat touched noses with the smaller she-cat.

"Hey, isn't that Lucina's tiara?" Kirito asked, noticing the she-cat's new adornment on her head. Nightheart nodded.

"She gave it to me before she left. I hope I can see her again. I'd like to give it back if she wasn't able to get another one."

"I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. Besides, it looks cute on you, Nightheart." Asuna meowed, causing her to blush.

"Suguha!" Alderheart called out as he approached the she-cat. The two shared a quick nuzzle with each other. "How'd you all come back here? I wasn't even sure if it'd be possible."

"Yui and I worked our magic and figured it out. Sorry it took so long to bring you both back together." Alderheart and Suguha began to blush. "In case you're wondering Alderheart; no mate in our world yet."

"K-Kazuto!" Suguha face began to burn with embarrassment.

"It's truly great to see you all again." The cats turned and saw that it was Bramblestar. "There's no impending evil on the horizon, is there?"

"Are we only invited back if there is?" The black tom asked, Asuna giving him a push. "Ow! Kidding!"

"Kirito and Yui were able to find a way for us to come to this world whenever we want to." Asuna told him. "We won't be here for as long as before, exactly, but our bodies will, if that makes sense." The leader seemed confused.

"When we log out of this world, it'll be like we're sleeping here. When we come back, we'll wake up again." Kirito clarified.

"So right now it's almost as if you're dreaming?"

"Kinda."

"Regardless, we're all more than happy to have you all back with us. You're more than happy to make yourselves at home whenever you're here." They all gave Bramblestar a bow of thanks before the leader returned to his spot overlooking his Clan on top of Highledge.

"Kirito!" The tom turned around and saw Swiftkit running towards him. She pressed up to him and let out a purr. "I knew you'd be back before I became an apprentice!"

"Didn't I tell you I'd try?" He meowed with a smile. "You've grown a bit, too, Swiftkit, but I still think you'll need to grow for a few more moons, though."

"I know that! I'm just happy that my mentor's here!"

"That makes two of us." Lelouch meowed as he walked over from the nursery. "Ever since you all left she never stopped talking about being your apprentice, Kirito."

"She really likes you, Kazuto. Better make sure to make time for her when she's able to be an apprentice." Suguha told her cousin.

"Definitely. Maybe I'll skip class a bit when the time comes."

"Don't think that you're putting your assignments on me!" Asuna stated. "You'll be responsible for both your schoolwork _and_ training Swiftkit."

"I don't mean to change the subject, but how exactly did you four manage to come back?" Lelouch wondered.

"Daddy and I had to work with the portal file a bit that brought them here." Yui answered. "Since nobody's ever heard of one before, we had to do a ton of research!"

"It definitely helped having Yui around. Probably would've taken months, maybe even a year, without her." Kirito added. "Hey, where's Foxkit?"

"Over here." They looked over towards the nursery and saw Ivypool walking out along with the small tom. "It's wonderful to see you all back. Sorry about this one. He was taking a nap."

"Aw, we're sorry for waking you, Foxkit." Asuna apologized.

"It's okay. I'm happy that you all are back again." He meowed. "Are Lucina and Noctis back, too?" Foxkit wondered, looking around camp.

"It's just these four, Foxkit." Lelouch told him.

"So we're the first ones to come back here?" Suguha asked.

"Yeah. A moon isn't really that long considering we didn't even know if we'd see you all again. Alderheart meowed. "But I hope that those two can come back someday, too. We'd all be together again."

"Speaking of together…where's Molewhisker?" Asuna asked Nightheart.

"He's just out on a hunting patrol. I'm sure he's going to regret going the second he sees you four in camp." She replied.

"No plans on kits yet?" The black she-cat asked.

"S-Suguha, of course not!" The violet-eyed she-cat stammered.

"Thank StarClan you both feel the same way. Your father and I can't be feeling like we need to be in the elder's den already." Ivypool said, letting out a sigh of relief.

"So…are _you_ both considering having more kits?" The cream she-cat asked, Ivypool and Lelouch immediately becoming flustered at the question.

"No!" Both Swiftkit and Foxkit interjected. "We're fine being the youngest ones!" The she-kit added.

"What they said. I'm fine with the three kits we have. Right, Ivypool?" The tom looked over at the silver-and-white she-cat, who nodded.

"Yes." She gave Foxkit a lick to the ear. "Three is more than enough." The silver-and-white kit looked over at Yui.

"Hey Yui, do you wanna play with me and Foxkit?" Swiftkit asked her. Yui looked over at Kirito and Asuna.

"Go have fun, Yui. You've been waiting to come here for a while, after all." Asuna told her.

"Yup. Have fun, kiddo." Yui ran off with the two kits, causing her parents to smile. "One is enough for us."

"I bet, especially since you both are still in your teen years." Lelouch meowed. "Still, it was nice of you to take Yui in. Even though she's just data, she acts exactly like a human would."

"Father, what do you mean by that?" Nightheart asked.

"It's a bit hard to explain in cat terms." The tom stood in thought for a bit, until Kirito placed his tail on Lelouch's shoulder.

"I'll take it from here. Pretty much, Yui only physically exists in the worlds we're able to travel to. In those worlds, the people who aren't human just live in a fixed pattern, but not Yui. She does as she pleases, as if she was human like us."

"I think that makes sense." Ivypool said.

"I'm sure if we were Twolegs we'd understand it way better." Alderheart added. "Asuna, did you want to visit the medicine den?"

"Of course! I'll see you all later!" Asuna followed the tom towards the den, excited to see the other two medicine cats again. When she entered, Leafpool and Jayfeather both turned, smiles on their faces.

"Asuna, it's wonderful to see you again!" Leafpool walked over to her and brushed her coat against Asuna's. "How have you been doing?"

"Great! I've missed being in here. I think I might need a refresher, to be honest." She meowed.

"We'd be more than happy to if that's the case." Jayfeather meowed as he approached her. "I was hoping that it really was you and the others that we heard outside. We've missed you three."

"Someone here missed you the most, though." Leafpool giggled, causing Jayfeather to blush.

"R-Right…" The tom admitted, still embarrassed about his feelings for the she-cat. "A-Anyway, can we assume your stay here isn't going to be for long?" She nodded.

"If this works anything like the games we've been in, when we log out, our bodies will look like they're asleep. When we log back in, we'll be awake." Asuna explained. "Time also flows the same in this world and our own, so we won't be as active as we were back then."

"Oh, so a bit like the daylight warriors that SkyClan had?" Alderheart meowed.

"Sort of, but shorter than that. We can't be in this world for the whole day or our friends and family may worry about us."

"We understand. Whenever you have the chance to lend a paw, feel free to come by." Leafpool told her. Asuna saw her menu screen suddenly pop up in front of her, an exclamation mark next to the 'Friends' section of her menu. She pressed it and saw that Jayfeather, Leafpool, and Alderheart were now added to the list.

"Is that…our names?" Alderheart asked as he took a glance at the screen. "What are they doing there all of a…whoa!" In front of the tom, a menu screen similar to Asuna's appeared. The same thing happened to both Jayfeather and Leafpool.

"You and I have one too, Jayfeather." Leafpool meowed, shock in her voice.

"Well it's not really helpful if I can't see it." The tom meowed.

"Asuna, your name's on here." Alderheart touched it with a paw, a new screen appearing. "Um…any idea what this is, Asuna?"

"Let me see…" Asuna looked at the interface. "Oh! You three are able to message me now!" She realized. "If you need any help, just press on this mic icon right here and say your message. Once you do, press the send button and I'll receive it. We can also just use it to keep in touch, too."

"This is very helpful. We'll make sure to send you messages whenever we need help." Leafpool meowed.

"Or to just see how you're doing. Your friends and family won't be the only ones worried if you don't come back once in a while." Alderheart added.

"I promise that I'll try to visit whenever I'm able to." She told them. "I need to go tell Kirito and Suguha about this."

"Are you leaving afterwards?" Jayfeather asked.

"Probably. We just wanted to test if we were able to come back here without fail, but we'll be back later on."

"Okay. We'll make sure to test this out once you leave." Alderheart meowed. Asuna left the den and looked around camp for Suguha and Kirito.

"Asuna?" The she-cat turned around and saw that Molewhisker had returned from his hunting patrol, Finleap and Twigbranch behind him. They had just dropped their fresh-kill onto the pile.

"Asuna!" Twigbranch ran over to her and let out a loving purr as she pressed close to the she-cat. "You're back! We've all missed you and the others so much!"

"Yeah! How have you been?" Finleap asked.

"Good. Kirito, Suguha, and I just found out how to come visit here." She told them. "How are you both doing?"

"Great! The usual hunting and Clan duties. Nothing bad has happened ever since you three left." The younger tom told her.

"And how about you? Nightheart says things are going well between you both." A blush formed on Molewhisker's face.

"Y-Yeah. We're still taking it very slow. She doesn't seem to mind, and neither do I…which is a relief." The cream she-cat let out a smile. "How long are you and the others here for?"

"We were just going to leave, but don't' worry, we'll be back. We just wanted to test out if we were able to come here safely."

"That's great! Hopefully this means Noct can find a way back here someday, too." Twigbranch meowed, causing Finleap to scoff.

"C'mon, I don't need my competition for you to come back!" Asuna let out a giggle. "I should get going to see the others. I think they're in the nursery."

"We'll come with you! We want to see Kirito and Suguha." The she-cat meowed. The four cats made their way over to the nursery, Kirito and Suguha watching Yui play with Foxkit and Swiftkit. Nightheart got up and walked over to the group.

"How was hunting?" She asked the brown and cream tom.

"It went well. Sorry for leaving without saying anything." Nightheart let out a smile and shook her head.

"It's okay. You're helping the Clan after all." She told him.

"Um…is that it?" The two looked over at Suguha. "I can't even tell that you both are together!"

"O-Oh! W-Well, um…"

"Suguha! She's only kidding you two." Asuna assured them. "Oh, I need to tell you both something."

"What's up?" The black tom asked.

"When I was speaking with everyone in the medicine den, a menu interface showed up for them. They're able to message me if they need any help."

"Really? Has it happened to any other cat here?" Suguha wondered.

"I got it!" Kirito stated. "If we think about this world like the games we play, it's almost like your role of medicine cat is a class, and you'll have quests to do every so often. I'm guessing that Bramblestar might have the same menu show up for him, too. What do you think, Yui?"

"Well, it does explain why the medicine cats can speak with mommy. I'm sure you and Suguha will have the same thing happen when you get apprentices."

"So I'll be able to talk with Kirito even when he's not here? Awesome!" Swiftkit cheered, causing Ivypool to giggle.

"Just try not to pester Kirito too much when the time comes."

"I'm all for it, don't worry." Kirito assured her. "We should go see if I was right about Bramblestar, and then we can leave."

"You're leaving already?" Foxkit asked.

"Don't worry, we're going to be gone, but Yui will be able to stick around and play with you both." The tom replied.

"We'll make sure to watch over her when you're not here." Ivypool meowed.

"You and Lelouch have these two to look after. I can take of Yui, don't worry." Daisy offered.

"Thank you, Daisy. Yui, try to stay behaved while we're gone, okay?" Asuna meowed.

"Yes, mommy." Asuna gave her a lick to the ear, Kirito doing the same.

"See you later, kiddo. Oh, and sorry if the licking thing is a bit weird. We've gotten used to it." Yui giggled, causing the others to smile. "Okay, let's go see Bramblestar." The three cats left the nursery and walked over to the ThunderClan leader.

"Are you three leaving?" He asked.

"Yes, but we'll be back. We actually wanted to ask you something." Asuna meowed.

"What is it?"

"Can you swipe your paw down in front of you?" Kirito asked. Bramblestar looked at them in confusion, but nodded. It quickly changed into surprise when he saw a menu screen similar to the ones the three were able to use appear in front of him. "Looks like I was right."

"Y-You knew this would happen?" The leader asked, still in shock.

"Asuna says that Leafpool, Alderheart, and Jayfeather were able to use it, too." Suguha told the leader

"Really? Why can I use it all of a sudden?"

"To be able to talk with us when we're in our own world." Kirito meowed. He moved next to the leader. "See? Our names each have a tab on top to message either one of us. Just press on this mic icon and say your message and we'll receive it."

"Fascinating. I'll make sure not to rely on this too much. Having to live two lives is going to be a lot for you three."

"Whenever the Clan needs any help, don't hesitate to message us. We'll stop whatever we're doing and come here as soon as we can." Asuna meowed.

"I appreciate it. Thanks, you three." Bramblestar bowed his head. "I guess we'll see you whenever you come back?"

"Yup. For now, we'll be sleeping in the warriors' den."

"We'll keep your bodies safe." The leader said with a small laugh. Kirito, Asuna, and Suguha entered the warriors' den and got into their bedding.

"So, is this how you three leave?" Cloudtail asked. Suguha nodded.

"When we log out, we'll look like we're sleeping." Suguha explained.

"And you'll be awake when you come back?" Brightheart wondered.

"Yup. Feel free to move us if we get in the way or anything." Lionblaze let out a laugh.

"Move you by the lake, got it."

"Please do. I'd love to see the look on Kazuto's face if that happened."

"C'mon, let's not do anything like that! What if some person just grabs me and brings me home? I didn't ask to come back here to be someone's pet!"

"I'm only kidding, Kirito. Although…someone here might accidentally move their nest closer to yours." He looked over at Sorrelstripe, the tom's daughter becoming flustered.

"F-Father, no! S-stop!"

"He never gives you a break, does he?" Asuna meowed, letting out a small laugh.

"Yes! I say something one time, he hears it, and it turns into this!"

"C'mon, I'm only doing it out of love…and to tease you." Lionblaze meowed, giving her a lick to the ear. "Well, we don't want to hold you three back from going home any longer. We'll see you whenever you wake up."

"Yeah. C'mon you three, let's get some stuff done back at home and then get back here." The three rested down on their nests and swiped their paws down in front of them. With one tap of the log-out button, the others watched as Kirito, Asuna, and Suguha immediately fell asleep. _We were actually able to come back to ThunderClan. Even with Yui's help I wasn't sure it was going to be possible. I guess our adventures here are going to continue after all, and I'm all for it._


End file.
